On the Edge
by mionejaina561
Summary: After receiving an intriguing distress signal from Delta Vega, the Enterprise goes to rescue a Commander from the clutches of a united faction of Klingons and Romulans.Now they must work together to save the Federation from an ancient form of warfare.
1. Scrabble and Rescue Missions

**How Far We've Come - Summary: After receiving an intriguing distress signal from Delta Vega, the Enterprise goes to rescue a Commander from the clutches of a united faction of Klingons and Romulans. From there, the newly acquired Commander and the crew of the Enterprise embark on a mission of intrigue and danger to stop whatever these factions want. Only what the enemy wants is not obvious and now Kirk and the Commander must work together to save worlds from warfare they haven't seen for centuries...**

**A/N: This is my first venture in the Trek universe. I just fell into love with the characters and have decided to give this a shot. I have written Star Wars fanfiction so I hope I can keep most of them in character. My OC is technically not a Mary Sue because no one has ever met her. Also there might be pairing but as of right now its an adventure fic...but will feature the humor of everyone. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Star Trek, rebooted or otherwise. If I did, then I would have both Bones and James T Kirk and I would not be sitting here wishing for it. **

**Chp. 1 Scrabble and Rescue Missions**

It was eight months into the Enterprise's five year mission, that the Federation's flagship received a rather intriguing distress signal.

Captain James T. Kirk was shifting restlessly on the bridge as the rest of the crew were thoroughly engaged in a rather volatile game of Scrabble on the various consoles in front of him.

"Damn it." Uhura, his chief communication officers exclaimed as Hikaru Sulu raised a fist in celebration. Kirk smirked as Pavel Chekov, looked furiously at the board in front of him.

Before Chekov could exclaim in victory, a burst of "Hell Yeah" screamed from his chair, as Dr. Leonard McCoy, his Chief Medical Officer, laughed victoriously. It must have been a slow day down in sick bay if his best friend was playing the game with his bridge crew.

"Just because you got that word, does not mean I can't beat you." A distinct female voice said, over the comm system.

"Whatever Chapel. I just got triple points for that X." McCoy retorted, as Jim rolled his eyes turning his chair to look at his First Officer, who was apparently engrossed in whatever he was doing at his console.

"Spock?" Jim asked slowly, as the Vulcan typed furiously, ignoring his name. The captain heard something intelligible come from his mouth when a Scottish accent yelped over the speakers.

"Tha' does not count as a wor' Laddie!" Scotty exclaimed as he heard groans from the rest of his crew. Jim groaned as he heard Chekov agree that the use of one's name does not count as word.

"According the rules, Mr. Scott, my given name is a appropriate response since it is clearly in the galaxy wide dictionary." Spock replied, as Jim huffed in his chair. Of course, his closest friends and command would exclude him from what was a very rousing game of Scrabble.

"Did anyone think to give me a PADD so I could join in this game?" Jim asked, as he heard the deep chuckle of his best friend over the comm.

"We did but then we thought you would use to this time to actually do paperwork." McCoy, who Jim affecionately called Bones, replied.

"That and you would cheat." Uhura replied, as she smiled accordingly to whatever she had put in for her turn. He heard Sulu curse under his breath, as Uhura swung around in her seat, obviously hearing something over the until now silent communication channel. Jim immediately stopped bouncing his leg up and down as soon as Uhura forgot about the game, concentrating hard on the message coming through.

Everyone seemed to stop the game as they waited patiently as the expression changed on Uhura's face from contemplation to urgency. She looked once at the captain, who nodded discreetly before a obvious distress signal came filtering through the bridge.

"This is…Commander Audrey Pearce.." was the first part that came through before sounds of static and phaser fire came over. "I repeat, this is Commander Audrey Pearce requesting immediate assistance."

Before Jim could ask Uhura where the signal was located, it continued. "I am being hunted and fired on by Klingons and Romulans. I repeat, Klingons and Romulans are on Delta Vega."

"Uhura, can you get a message back to this Commander Pearce?" Jim asked, as Uhura shook her head.

"It seems to be a recording, sir. It was beamed directly to us." She replied as Kirk nodded.

"Is there anything else on that distress signal, Lieutenant?" Uhura listened carefully but shook her head again.

"It's a continous loop, Captain. It seems that this Commander set it at her command to beam out." He turned to Spock, whose eyebrow was raised slightly at the name of the planet.

"Spock,do you have any idea why the Klingons and Romulans would have any interest in Delta Vega?" Jim asked, as the Vulcan looked up the planet at his station.

"None sir. The Starfleet outpost was abandoned right after the Narada incident." Spock said, as he turned to look at Jim, who gave him a pointed look not to go there.

"Chekov, are we the closest ship the Delta Vega system?" He asked, his mind working a millions way. He hated that planet with a passion and had no desire to revisit it anytime soon.

Instead of Chekov responding, Uhura chimed in. "Sir, it seems that the distress signal was directly aimed at the Enterprise." She said, causing Jim to whip around incredulously.

As Jim formulated a reply, he realized the smart thing to do what to get in contact with StarFleet command and see if this distress signal was real or a ploy from the Klingons to get the Enterprise cornered. "Get in contact with Admiral Pike, Uhura. " Jim said, as she nodded as he turned again to his First Officer.

"Spock what is your analysis of the distress signal?"

"Its seems to be genuine, Captain." Spock replied. Jim sighed.

"Captain, Admiral Pike is on the line."

"Put it up at the viewscreen, Lieutenant." Jim said, as the face of his mentor and surrogate father appeared.

"Captain Kirk." Pike said as Jim nodded. "I usually don't get called unless it's an emergency. So what's the urgency?"

Jim smiled at the bluntness of the former captain. Pike never beat around the bush, even when he was drunk and bloody back at the bar in Iowa. Some things never change over time.

"Five minutes ago, my communications officer received a distress signal over our private comm channel." Jim said, as Pike just nodded. "It was from a Commander Pearce on Delta Vega and stated that both Klingons and Romulans were on planet, attacking."

If it wasn't for Jim knowing Pike as well as he did, he would have missed the slight blink and widening of eyes before it settled into that poker face. Jim took this as cue to continue with his question. "From what we gather, sir, is that Delta Vega was abandoned eight months ago. As of right now, I am quite disbelieving that this is a real distress call."

Pike sighed and closed his eyes briefly. Jim smiled victoriously inside because he knew that Pike would know about this. Any other Admiral would have rebuffed his inquisition and told him to go on his merry way to their next destination. Pike was different and knew that this was a serious situation, which is why Kirk told Uhura to contact him directly.

For a few moments, there was a tense silence on the bridge as the two captains of the Enterprise stared each other down. "Captain Kirk, your orders are to go to the Delta Vega system and rescue Commander Pearce." Jim sat there, arms crossed. "I will inform the rest of command of your new mission. Once you have Commander Pearce, please inform her to contact me. Pike out."

As the viewscreen went blank and the stars were seen again, Jim let out a breath he didn't realize he was holding. He keyed in a code for a shipwide broadcast to get everyone ready for the upcoming battle they were bound to engage in.

"Attention crew of the Enterprise, this is Captain Kirk. We have been ordered to Delta Vega. Prepare all weapons and station for battle. Kirk out." He said, as he kept both channels open to Sickbay and the transporter room where Scotty was.

"Bones.." Jim said, when the doctor grunted an affirmative to his unasked question as he heard orders being barked out to his staff. He heard Scotty run out of the transporter room to his engineering as Kirk closed out the private comms.

"Chekov, plot us a course to Delta Vega." Jim said, as the young Russian nodded. The rest of his bridge crew were working seamlessly together knowing exactly what to do. For whatever reason, slow days on the Enterprise always turned into stressful ones.

Captain James T. Kirk couldn't help but wish he knew more about what he was getting his crew into.

It was cold, snowing and not only were there Klingons and Romulans chasing after her, she had the not so nice wildlife of Delta Vega tracking her every move. This was definitely not Commander Pearce's day. All she could hope is that her distress signal, from her ship before it was destroyed (Damn Klingons) reached the flagship of the Federation in time.

As she reached another cave, this one bigger than the last one that the Romulans chased her out of, she looked around for some cover so she could at least catch her breath. She looked around and realized that the weather had gotten worse and panted realizing that the storm should at least slow down her attackers for at least a half hour. Which gave her enough time to change the power on her phaser and rig her communicator to work. Then she could continue on her journey to the lab that was her first objective once she reached the planet. She just hoped the neither of the now united factions would reach it first.

Pearce slid down the ice wall, the cold seeping through her now wet winter clothing as she set to work on her communicator so when the Enterprise came, they could lock onto her location. Or at least she hoped they could. Otherwise she would have to find another way off this godforsaken planet.

She knew if her signal would have reached any other ship other than the famous one that saved Earth, then Starfleet command probably would let her die and the secrets she held with her. But the now Admiral Pike was not one to let a man behind, and neither was his prodigy James T. Kirk. Which is why she rigged her ship to beam out only to the private frequency of the Enterprise and not any other ship. If there was one crew that could possibly save her, it was the one that saved Earth.

She sighed heavily as she fished out a replacement power pack for her phaser out of her pockets and set about making sure she was armed again. Running out of firepower against Klingons was a not a good idea since hand to hand with them was almost impossible. She was lucky enough to be in the top of her combat classes and knew how to take down the strongers races of aliens. Klingons were not on her list of specialities. In her other pockets rested her knife for closer combat and a emergency med kit was strapped to her waist. There was no way in the galaxy she was gonna leave her ship without it. She tended to get injured anywhere she went, and after a few close calls, she learned how to play doctor on herself.

The commander had her legs splayed out in front of her as the red head closed her eyes briefly, her recent injuries making themselves know. She counted at least three cracked or broken ribs, from the heavy boot of a very angry Romulan, some torn ligaments and lots of bruises and cuts from the tumbling and falling down ice cliffs. Pearce really did not like this planet, and would remain off her list as good vacation spots.

The sound of heavy footsteps and cursing Klingon alerted Pearce to impending doom, so she stood carefully, making sure she didn't make any noise, phaser at the ready. As soon as they were about to turn the corner, she heard their communicators squawk in Klingon, which she roughly translated into a Federation ship had appeared at the edge of the system.

She breathed a sigh of relief but also took advantage of the distraction to shoot both the soldiers, taking them out with two shots as they slumped dead to the ground. Walking over carefully to them, she spit on them as she listened carefully for anymore voices. Peacre swore softly when she heard both Romulan and Klingon coming toward her and she realized that she never took the time to think of a escape route.

So the commander went back to her hiding spot, only to hear more angry Klingon curses as they turned round the corner as she ran, barrelling toward them, heading toward the entrance. She moved swiftly, her ribs protesting at her gymnastics, out and under the larger beings as she made her way into the now quiet planet. The commander was running, placing an occasional shot behind her hoping to slow down her attackers. When she ran out of breath, coughing up a bit of blood in the process, she groaned. As the two species raced toward her, she felt the transporter beam catch her and soon enough she was gone before they could reach her. As she materialized in a transporter room, she had never been happier to see a Federation receiving pad in her life.

Then she promptly passed out only to hear a Southern voice curse as she fell to the ground.

**So do I have your attention? Review if you want. I'll probably have more up tonight as I sit her still writing. I think my butt is asleep anyway...**


	2. It's another You, Jim

**Disclaimer: Again I do not own Star Trek, rebooted or otherwise. If I did, I definitely would not be sitting here daydreaming bout Bones...or Kirk for that matter.**

**Chp.2 "It's another you, Jim."**

The Enterprise came out of warp at the edge of the Delta Vega to scan the area for the hostilities that were bound to be there. _What in God's name are the Romulans and Klingons doing?_ Kirk wondered to himself as he looked around.

"Spock, report." Kirk asked.

"It appears that there are multiple carbon based life forms on the planet, Captain." Spock replied, looking at his screen once again. "It appears as most of those are registering as Romulan and Klingon."

"What about any humans, Spock?" Kirk asked, as his eyes turned toward the viewscreen scanning the space ahead of him with his own eyes.

"I pick up one definite human life form on the east side of the planet." Spock replied. "And about six other life forms within the immediate vicinity."

The captain turned to Uhura who was monitoring all the frequencies coming from the planet. "Captain, it appears that the Klingon ship in the system has picked up on our arrival." Uhura said, as he noticed a Bird of Prey move away from the other ship laying in orbit.

Kirk had to think fast if they didn't want to get into a battle over one person. He punched in the code for the transporter room. "Scotty, are we close enough to get a lock on that human signal and beam her aboard?" he asked, as Sulu kept the ship moving forward on thrusters only.

"Aye, Captain." Scotty replied. "Good thin' I revamped the transporter."

"Then on with it Scotty. I don't want to make repairs if I don't have too."

"How close is the Klingon ship, Chekov?" Kirk asked as the seventeen year old turned around.

"Can't tell Keptin. They hawe cloaked and our sensors cannot read it anymore." Chekov replied as Kirk cursed inwardly. What was so important that the Klingons would cloak for?

"Scotty, how are we coming on the beaming the commander out?" Kirk asked as proximity alarms started wailing.

"Ten seconds, Captain!" Scotty yelled back, as he heard the countdown for the transporter beam. "I have a lock Captain!"

Sooner than the captain liked, the Klingon vessel appeared almost in front of them and decloaked. "Red Alert. All stations , prepare to fire weapons." Kirk yelled as he saw the Klingons fired up their weapons system. They weren't even going to try to communicate with them as the first torpedo hits the Enterprise shields as the ship bucked under the first shot.

"Fire all weapons Sulu!"

"Aye sir."'

"Captain, we got her!"

"Captain, the Romulan ship is following suit. In range in ten seconds." Spock said, as the ship rocked violently under the fire from the enemy vessel.

"Get us out of here, Sulu. Chekov set course for the nearest starbase." Kirk replied, as Sulu flew under and to the left of the Bird of Prey. Let it be known that his pilot was the only one who could possibly pull off the manuever and soon they were at the back of the ship when Kirk ordered the ship to go into warp. Soon enough the stars streamlined and they were out of danger for now.

"Scotty, damage report." Kirk asked before realizing that he was in the transporter room. "Sorry Scotty. How is the commander?"

"Got her all in one piece, Captain." Scotty replied as he heard Bones over the comm cursing up a storm. "Though I got to say, tha' she is one tough cookie even when she is passed out."

Kirk laughed as he closed out the channel to Bones ordering his staff around and sat back in his chair, contemplating on why the Romulans and Klingons were working together. The only source that could let him know was unconscious on the way to Sickbay and the other would be even tougher to crack.

"Uhura, get my a private channel to Admiral Pike and route it to my ready room. Once you have it, have the command crew come also." Kirk said, standing out of his chair. He looked at the highest ranking officer behind his senior command. "Lt. Commander Donnelly, you have the conn while we are in debriefing."

He returned the nod. "Until you can get a encrypted channel, Spock you have the conn. I am going down to Sickbay to check on the commander." Kirk said, heading toward the turbolift as Spock took the command chair.

Kirk was lost in his numerous thoughts on the way to see the condition of the newest acquired member of his ship, so when he entered Sickbay he was startled out of his thoughts by a very feminine voice arguing quite loudly with Bones.

He smirked as he strode toward the two voices that only seemed to get louder as he got to the biobed that a very attractive red head was sitting up on, wincing in pain. Bones must have known it was him when he turned, obviously annoyed.

"I think we have another you, Jim." Bones growled, glaring at his patient whose brown eyes were glaring back. "She's trying to refuse medical treatment, when its obvious she needs it."

"I don't need it. I'm fine see?" She replied as she tried to get off the biobed, only to stand a few seconds before she almost collapsed. Jim stepped over and placed a ginger arm around her, helping the petite form back on the biobed.

Blue eyes met green eyes. "See, another you. Just female." The doctor said, waving his tricorder in his hand wildly. Jim rolled his eyes as he heard a sharp intake of breath, when he accidentally hit her ribs and looked directly at the commander.

"I would listen to him if I were you." Kirk said, as the brown eyes proved unyielding. "He's used his CMO status many times on me since I became captain. That and he's a menace with hypos."

Again just silence as the patient and doctor continued a staring contest, neither of them backing down. He sighed as he shook his head and reached out his hand to her. "Captain James. T Kirk, USS Enterprise." He said, succinctly as she looked at the hand then back up to him.

"Commander Audrey Pearce." She said, shaking his hand as he looked over at a clearly annoyed Southern doctor as he stepped over to the other side of the bed, holding out his hand.

"Dr. Leonard McCoy, Chief Medical Officer on this bucket of bolts." Bones said, gruffly as she shook his hand also. "Now can I properly look you over without you fighting me?"

The red head winced as she readjusted herself, nodding slowly as Jim shook his head. "See that wasn't so bad was it?" he asked as the tricorder moved over her body with ease. Once he saw his friend move away and start gathering supplies, he looked at the commander fully

Commander Audrey Pearce was by far one of the prettier commanders James T. Kirk had seen since the Narada fiasco. Her auburn hair was wildly out of place, different strands soaked with both green and red blood across her face, where numerous cuts were. Her brown eyes only accented her beauty as he took in the rest of her. It was obvious she wasn't part of any ship in the Federation judging by the wet civilian clothes that clung to her lithe body.

The captain's blue eyes then took in the tattered snow coat and pants the resided on the hook near the door to the room and the only obvious sign she was a Starfleet officer was her class ring that resided on her right hand, that holding her left hand gingerly. He tried to get a look at the graduating class only to be cut off by Bones returned with a osteogenerator , several hypos and a dermal regenerator.

"So what's the damage Bones?" Jim asked, as Pearce looked warily at the hypos that the doctor was carefully filling.

"Three broken ribs, broken hand, a slight concussion. Also saw a torn ligament in the shoulder and a sprained ankle." Bones said, looking almost gleeful as the hypo hovered around the neck of his patient.

"Oh so nothing you haven't dealt with before." The Captain retorted as Bones stuck the hypo into her neck causing her to wince.

"Nothing is as bad as you and your allergies, Jim." Bones grunted as an eyebrow raised at his comment. The doctor looked down at her. "Tell me you aren't allergic to anything."

For the first time since he had been there, a smile broke out on her face. "No but the look on your face was well worth worrying you." Pearce replied easily as Jim just sat there shell shocked. Bones put another hypo into her neck and her eyes began to droop a little then opened again.

"Pike?" she asked as if he knew what she was talking. Fortunately the captain knew.

"My communications officer is working on an encrypted private channel for the debriefing. We will wake you once you're healed then you can get to talk." Kirk said, standing as McCoy started to set up the osteogenerator for the commander's ribs. She nodded as her head lolled to the side as she passed out.

He looked at Bones, who was calibrating the machine to work for the patient at hand. "Think you could Chapel in her to clean her up?" he asked softly as his best friend nodded, those green eyes softening a little. "Then I'm going back to the bridge. Alert me when she wakes up."

With that, Jim strode of Sickbay, a thousand thoughts running through his head but the most prominent was what was she doing for the Federation and what did the Klingons and Romulans want with her?

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Audrey Pearce awoke several hours later by arguing voices outside her room where she was currently laying down. If she was correct, it sounded like Captain Kirk and Dr. McCoy. Her suspicions were answered when a blond nurse appeared at her bedside, looking at the various readouts.

"Don't mind them. Those two bicker like a married couple every day." She said, leaning over checking Pearce pupils. She then helped the commander into a sitting position, putting a pillow behind her back. As soon as she was sitting up, Captain Kirk and McCoy entered the room, looking annoyed with each other and Audrey couldn't help but snicker at their identical expressions.

"How is she doing, Chapel?" McCoy asked, as Chapel just nodded and stepped out of the room. He sighed and turned to her. "Fine. How do you feel Commander?"

Before she answered, she sized up both men and came to a realization that the only way to stop the Klingons and Romulans would be with Captain James T. Kirk and his ship. "Please, Doctor, call me Audrey." She replied as moved her left hand slightly. "And to answer your question, well rested and better."

McCoy nodded as the Captain smiled. "Good to know because I was just arguing with Bones here to release you for a few hours to my ready room so you can contact Admiral Pike." Kirk said, his blue eyes glaring at his CMO.

"And I think that you need to be under observation for at least another four hours. Concussions can be nasty things, and the Captain can tell you about them." McCoy retorted as she watched the two men carefully when a stoic voice came over the comm system.

"Bridge to Captain Kirk."

"Kirk. Go ahead Spock." Kirk replied, looking pointedly at Bones who was starting to lose a fight with his captain.

"Admiral Pike is ready when you and the Commander are. Bridge out."

"See Bones, Pike says this cannot wait. If you want, you are more than welcome to accompany us to my ready room." The captain said, as the doctor just grumbled loudly as he turned back to Audrey.

"Think you can walk, Commander?" he asked as she nodded, swinging her legs across the bed so she could touch the floor.

"Think I could get some clothes so I don't walk around this ship in a hospital gown?" she asked, as Bones nodded, handing her Starfleet regulation blacks and a gold command shirt. She raised an eyebrow at them. "How did you know I was command and not operations?"

"Pike." Was all Jim said as the two exited her room to allow her to get dressed. It was then Audrey noticed that she was no longer covered in blood. They must have cleaned her up while she was out, as she slipped into the slacks, which was a rare occurrence since most female officers wore skirts, and the undershirts. The newly ribs protested as she slipped the fitted command shirt over her head, and slipped on the socks and regulation boots.

The red head stepped out of the room, only to see McCoy and Kirk waiting patiently for her all while the captain give the other man a pointed look that said "there's she fine." And it was then that she realized that the Captain and her would get along great.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Kirk was amazed that despite being on some good drugs, he should know he's been on them too,that Pearce kept up the quickened pace with him and Bones as they neared his ready room. When he had originally commed Pike right after the short battle with the Klingons, he was told that Pearce would need to be debriefed first, then he could ask the questions. It was the first time Kirk had ever been shut out by Pike and he had an inkling that what Commander Pearce had to say what not good.

He keyed in his code for his ready room only to be greeted by the somber face of Admiral Pike, obviously waiting patiently. As the three of the entered, Pike nodded as each of them took seats nearest the comm screen.

"Kirk, McCoy." Pike said, as his eyes riveted on the red head sitting next to Kirk, all decked out in Command gold. "Commander Pearce, glad to see my ship reached you in time."

"Not as glad as I am, sir." Pearce replied as Pike eyed him and McCoy warily and it seems Pearce read his mind because the next word out of her mouth were music to his ears. "Permission to speak freely, Admiral?"

"By all means, Audrey that hasn't stopped you before." Pike replied, as Bones eyes widened as Pike use of Pearce's first name. This was about to get very interesting.

"The only way to stop what is about to come is to include not only Captain Kirk but the senior command of this ship." Pearce said, as Pike sighed expecting those very words.

"Then by all means, Captain, Doctor stay. Starfleet Command and Admirality agree with your assessment Commander. The Enterprise at this time is the only ship capable of taking on this threat." Pike said, as Kirk leaned back allowing the other two to explain then realizing he really didn't want this explained a second time around.

"Sir, can I request a brief interruption as the rest of my command crew gets debriefed also?" Kirk asked, as Pike sat there for a minute, contemplating his answer.

"By all means, Captain, the less this is explained , the better."

Kirk nodded as he stood up to go gather his crew but before he could the door opened revealing Spock, Uhura, Scotty, Chekov and Sulu as he just sat back down shaking his head. His crew was not one for following orders and Uhura probably had them all listening in on the conversation somehow. Sneaky bastards and made a note to restrict access to private comms to only himself and McCoy.

As the other made themselves comfortable around the table, Pearce turned around taking everyone in. She stood slightly against the table as Kirk did the same. He looked at Pike, who just rolled his eyes as he introduced his senior command to the newest addition.

"Commander Pearce, its my pleasure to introduce to my senior command crew." Kirk said, as she smiled slightly as she took in his right hand man. "Next to me is Commander Spock, our science officer, along with having the great pleasure of being my first officer. "

She held up her hand in the typical Vulcan salute and was given it in return. "I am knowledgeable in your customs, Commander. I look forward to learning more." She replied as she moved on the only other female in the room.

"This is Lieutanant Uhura, our senior communications officer." Kirk said, when Pike finally piped up.

"Lieutenant Uhura can probably give you a run for your money in xeno-linguistics, Commander." Pike said, as the two women glanced at each other, a conversation passing wordlessly between them. Kirk groaned inwardly knowing he was in trouble.

"And moving on. This is my Chief Engineer, Montgomery Scott, also know as Scotty." She smiled sweetly at the Scot as he just nodded back. "And those two in the back are Sulu and Chekov my pilot and navigator. And of course you've already met Bones, so that's really it."

Pearce smiled at everyone as she turned back wordlessly to Pike, whose eyes were laughing as he took in Bone's scowl. "I got a report from Captain Kirk that both Klingons and Romulans were on Delta Vega. Is that true, Commander?"

"Saw with my own two eyes, Admiral. Many times as they were chasing me." Pearce replied sarcastically as the others tried not snicker.

"Why were they on the planet in the first place? And how the hell did they know YOU were there?" Pike asked, as Pearce glanced down for a moment trying to gain her composure, which was obviously shaken by the accusation. Kirk leaned forward more as he tried to gauge what Pike was hinting at, only to see Pike take in what he was seeing. "Are you sure they got it?"

"I have no idea if the lab was breached. I never got there." Pearce said, looking up. "The Klingons and Romulans were already down there when I landed."

"So the lab was stationed there? That is a fact?" Pike asked, as the other started murmuring amongst themselves as the other two carried on their conversation. He felt a light tap on his shoulder as he was handed a PADD from Spock, and he took it carefully.

"I don't know." She gritted out, her tone rough. "As I said, I never reached where is was supposed to be. It could have been deserted for all I know. But what I do know is that both of the races thought something of value was there and were determined to make sure no one else knew about it."

As Kirk read on, he realized what was going on and looked up at the screen and glared. "So are you going to keep arguing or clue the rest of us in on what could be a galaxy wide epidemic?" Kirk almost shouted causing Bones to jump out of his chair.

Several shouts of "Epidemic?" (Bones) to "Whoa" (Sulu ) rang across the room, startling both of the arguing parties. Kirk only smirked as both eyes settled on him. "Glad you could join us, but I just read your encrypted files and was wondering when you could explain why this has been kept secret?"

"You what?" was the almost screech from Pearce as Pike rolled his eyes and muttered "Why am I not surprised?"

"Actually Commander, it was I that hacked into Starfleet's records." Spock said, as two sets of surprised eyes turned to him and Spock did what was the Vulcan version of a nonchalant shrug. "After engaging the Klingons, I was inclined to look into it further in case we ran into even more in the Neutral Zone."

Kirk couldn't help but feel proud that his stoic first officer would ever think of something like that. It appeared as if Jim was really rubbing off on the guy. Finally Pike looked behind him and grimaced, turning back to the Enterprise crew.

"Commander Pearce, could please fill in the crew on your mission and what the recent events could mean. I am being hailed by Command. Pike out." And just as he appeared, the comm screen went blank as the entire room focused in on Commander Pearce waiting for an explanation.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Do I still have you? Sure hope so. Review if you can!


	3. No Win Scenarios

**Disclaimer: Again do not own any of these guys, only Pearce. If I did, well then Kirk and Bones would be mine and Kirk would beat my ex. **

**A/N: I know three chapters in 1 day. But that is what I get for being off and sitting on my butt all day. which is why i am now stiff and achy. But its worth it cuz I'm enjoying the ride. and beware its a pretty long post!  
**

Chp.3 No Win Scenarios

Audrey Pearce looked directly in the eyes of the infamous James T. Kirk, whose gaze was unyielding in every way. He was determined to get the entire story and would not give up until she did. She intertwined her hands and leaned down on the table and sighed. "Where do you want me to start?" she asked, as the gaze softened a little.

"From the beginning." Kirk said, as the others around him nodded.

"Like academy beginning…cuz I am sure you are wondering about that." She replied, smirking as the Doctor next to her snorted and Uhura coughed as she spit out her coffee. "For your information, Captain, I was in your year but you were a little…"

As soon as she said that, the Captain eyes widened. "Oh my God, that was you?" McCoy exclaimed looking at her carefully and she clearly remembered the two scampering across campus butt naked to correct a statue that was not anatomically correct.

She nodded then her smile dropped noticeably remembering what she was explaining. "Two weeks before.." Pearce started, as she realized who she was talking to she didn't have to name it. "everything happened, my mother disappeared from StarFleet's scopes."

"Wait, a minute. Who exactly was your mother that Starfleet kept a watchful eye on her?" McCoy asked, his fingers tapping restlessly on the table next to her.

"Dr. Auriana Dooling." She replied, the name sticking on her tongue. She loved her mother but sometime saying the name made her cringe. If there was anyone in the room that would understand, it would be the Captain across from her. Having famous parents sucked most of the time.

"You mean, the geneticist who developed cures for about half of the diseases in the galaxy?" Sulu from the other end of table exclaimed.

"The one and only." She replied bitterly as the other grasped what she was getting at. "The only reason I joined Starfleet was to piss her off. So when she disappeared, Starfleet Command basically pulled me out of classes and threatened my commission upon this very ship if I didn't find her."

She took a minute to compose herself as she watched Kirk's face betray his emotions. Instead of Kirk asking the questions, Spock spoke up. "Your mother worked for the Federation?" he asked, as Kirk's face continued to contort to different emotions.

"She did and she hated it. I hated it. She was stationed at a very top secret lab in Quadrant Four about two years ago." The bitterness hadn't left her tone as she continued on. Because of that damn woman, she was sent out on a wild goose chase because otherwise she would be deemed a traitor just like the woman who gave birth to her. It was days like today that she wished her father was alive.

"So let me get this straight, you're telling me that your mother, a Federation renowned doctor and geneticist, is on the most wanted list?" McCoy asked, his tone bewildered. "Because she wanted out? Traitor, my ass."

She took a deep breath that stopped Dr. McCoy is his tirade. The most difficult part was about to be revealed. "My mother was studying old viruses, the ones we found cures to hundreds of years ago…" Audrey said, feeling like the twenty six year old she was. "She was seeing if they would work against some…non human races."

The room became silent instantly, even Dr. McCoy. It was Uhura, this time that broke the silence. "And you're telling us StarFleet and the Federation knew about this experiment?" her tone angry. She shook her head.

"They didn't find out what she was working on until they lost contact with the lab and found most of the personnel dead from a deadly virus." She shook her head violently. Her mother had been severely crazy in the head ever since her father died on a simple away mission aboard the Faragut ten years ago. "So because they can't find her, they assume she's jumped ship and gone rogue."

Spock raises an eyebrow at her figure of speech, which is typical cuz he's Vulcan, whereas the rest of the command crew lets it settle in. "Do you believe your mother would do such a thing? And why would Klingons and Romulans work together just to get what she was studying or making for that matter?" Kirk asked, his voice coming to him.

Audrey leaned back. "Which is why Admiralty thought it best for me to go searching alone. Worst case scenario, I get killed, no one knows. Best case is I find her, bring her in and get my commission back. Either way Starfleet wins." The eyebrow on Spock rose even higher as she continued speaking. She definitely had to ask Jim is those eyebrows ever jumped off the Vulcan's head.

"So if you get killed, who stops a rogue woman with an obvious agenda from realizing what could be a galaxy wide, not just Federation wide, epidemic? What the hell is Command thinking?" McCoy exclaimed as Pearce just shook her head.

"I honestly have no idea if someone released that virus to test it and kidnap my mother in the process or my mother is actually that crazy to kill off an entire research lab." Audrey replied, bringing her hands to rub her forehead. This is exactly why she worked alone, because Starfleet did not want anyone else to know about their screw up. If only they had taken away her mother's lab when her father died, then maybe she could be on this ship, with this crew. God she hated her mother right now.

"In your honest opinion, Audrey," Kirk said, his blue eyes meeting hers, "do you think your own flesh and blood could have done that…to people?"

She sighed dejectedly. Even she couldn't have faith in her own mother, the woman who raised her, to believe she wouldn't exact her revenge on the Federation. "I honestly don't know and that's what I have been chasing for almost a year. It's been like a wild goose chase, hacking into various systems, looking for a sign of a complex, top of line research lab, only to come upon deserted, empty planets." Her bitter, lonely tone returns briefly as she laughs. "Until Delta Vega, that was the only lead I got that was actually worth something."

"And that's when you were ambushed." Kirk stated, as Audrey nodded. "How?"

She shrugged. "I landed on planet, nothing amiss, but I came in the opposite side of their vessels. I was too concentrated on getting to the lab that when I was fired upon made me realize that maybe I had been followed." She replied as the other started to look at each other knowingly. "Or Starfleet and the Federation set me up and leaked my new locations to the factions who want that virus the most."

McCoy sat their his chin in his head, lips pursed in a deep thought, whereas his counterpart the Captain looked ready to explode. Even the Vulcan, whose face did not betray emotion, was portraying a certain anger in his eyes.

"Either way, its now up to us to figure out what has happened to my mother and if the Romulans and Klingons have that virus." Pearce said, looking directly at the Captain and couldn't take the angry, somber mood anymore when she cracked a smile. "Help me Obi Wan Kenobi, you're my only hope."

The entire crew burst out laughing at her quip, except the Vulcan of course, as they realized what she meant to do. It was going to be a dangerous, taxing mission, and with the possibility of going into hostile environments without any backup, they need a lift me up. It was how she survived these past few months alone.

When Kirk finally stop laughing, he stared at her incredulously. " I cannot believe you just made a Star Wars reference." He said, as McCoy just grunted his affirmative, as he tried not to crack a smile.

"Had to lighten the mood somehow, You guys are the first actual beings I have been around for longer than a span of ten hours in months." She shrugged as Kirk threw a stylus at McCoy, who in turn rolled his eyes. "But the only hope thing basically covers it all."

"So Commander, where do we go from here?" the Captain asked, as the other waited patiently for her answer. "This was and is still your mission Commander. And it is also your family. Whatever you decide, we will follow."

The red headed commander sat there, half in awe, half is disbelief that a Captain of his caliber would take her lead. It was her mission, and despite her ability of pissing others off, she needed his crew and their intelligence. She need physical company, company she had solely missed in the past ten months.

"First off, I need access to a computer, preferably one with the highest encryption codes." She said, thinking of her next move. "But I need all of your help. I know the virus that was released and the other two that could be deadly to not just humans but to Vulcans also. Most of that data is hidden in the distress signal I sent out and only I can retrieve it."

"Until I can get that data, we must set a course for the closest starbase at the edges of the neutral zone. We may be sitting ducks but it could get us the intel and transmissions we need from the Klingons and the Romulans." Pearce said, her tone not to be argued with. Kirk nodded.

"You can use my quarters for the time being, Commander. Its not like I use them on a constant basis anyhow. There are also quarters attached through my bathroom, that you can use for rest intervals." Kirk said, as Uhura went to scribble everything down on her PADD. The captain mask was on as Kirk gave out orders. "Chekov, Sulu, Scotty, I leave up to you three to figure out how to outmaneuver and outgun any and all Klingon and Romulan ships. If they are after us, and our position is leaked, we need all the advantages we can get. Spock, Bones, once Pearce as assembled all her data, you three must look at finding a cure for these new strains of viruses, in the case we may come in contact with them. And lastly, Uhura, monitor all frequencies, Starfleet Command and others to alert us if we are being tracked. You can also assist the Commander here in downloading and decrypting her files. Until the next meeting, you are dismissed."

Everyone exited as quickly as they came in for the exception of the Captain, his CMO and herself as all three of them quietly sized up one another.

"How good are combat wise, Pearce?" Kirk asked, as she stretched lightly, trying not to aggravate her newly healed ribs.

"Top of my class Level 3, sir. According to Pike, the best female in decades." She replied, smirking. Once the kind doctor cleared her for all duty, she would be in the rec room, training to get herself back into shape. And with other fighters too.

"Good, we need you then. Once Bones here clears you, you, Sulu, and I will organize a time to recondition ourselves. Do you know the art-form of fencing, Commander?" he asked, as she in turn raised an eyebrow.

"I grew up among different species. I learned the forms of many different fighting styles, fencing and Vulcan included." She shrugged again, her shoulder protesting the movement for the first time. "Apparently females appear as weak in different races and well…I had to learn to defend myself."

Kirk then got, signaling their time in the room was over and that either she went to sickbay or straight to the quarters to start her work. Preferably she would rather do that latter. "Pearce, exactly how familiar are you with studying these viruses?" McCoy asked as they headed for the turbolift.

"Enough to replicate what my mother created and to reverse it." She replied as his eyebrow raised. What was with these people and their eyebrows?

"I read your file, Commander. Before you were whisked off into the unknown, you were at the top of your class in both the command and science fields. Hell I think you surpassed me on some of them." Kirk said, leaning against the cool metal of the lift.

"And that says a lot." McCoy added as they exited on to a quiet deck that she realized was the senior officers.

"My genius was inherited. Lets just hope that genius does not translate into crazy like my mother." She said as they appeared near a door that said Captain James T. Kirk as the blond tapped in his code. Audrey took a quick look around only to realize the entire command crew was situated down this hallway. Next to the Captain's was McCoy's quarters which she suspected also joined as well as Lieutenant Uhura's and Commander Spock's. Further down with Sulu's and Chekov's followed by Scotty's at the very end, the one nearest the ladder, which she assumed led to engineering.

As soon as she stepped foot in the captain quarters, she breathed a sigh of relief and finally realized she wasn't alone in this anymore. For some godforsaken reason, this ship, its captain and what appeared to be his closest friends came to her aid and let her in their inner circle. True it might have to do with the fact that she is close to the now Admiral Pike, who had captained this ship until he was captured, but still. She had never met such accepting people in her life.

She heard Kirk's voice ask her a question that snapped her out of her thoughts. Color rose to her cheeks when she realized the handsome captain was just staring at her. "Sorry, I was kind lost in my own head. Tends to happen with you live in solitude for months upon end. You end up talking yourself silly." She replied, as Kirk smiled brightly and McCoy shook his head.

"I was saying that the guest quarters were right through that door if you want to get some more rest before staring at a computer all day." He looked at McCoy who just glared back. Man that nurse was right. Those two are like a married couple. "Bones' quarters are to the left, so don't be surprised if he comes in unexpectedly. He has a habit on checking up on his patients at the most inopportune times."

"Its called making sure those patients are following orders." The doctor retorted as Audrey took in the simple yet lavish room. A kitchen, well replicators were situated to her right, where some dirty dishes lay, while the living was devoid of anything personal except for the three dimensional chess set that was standing on a self above the couch, with a bottle of bourbon (her eyes lit up at the good stuff) sitting next to it. She could see the bathroom through the bedroom, where the standard issued sheets lay rumpled on the bed, obviously not made up by its owner and by the bed was a comm and computer station.

"Unfortunately with my known allergies and willingness not to obey doctor's orders, I set up my comm and computer a few feet away from my bed." Kirk said, his tone playful. McCoy rolled his eyes before slapping his friend upside the head.

"I'm going back to Medical." He turned to look at Audrey. "If any sudden headache come on, just press the button that flashes Dr. McCoy and I will be up here pronto."

With that he nodded, and walked out the door leaving her with the Captain, who seemed to study her intently.

It was the next two words out of his mouth that caught her completely off guard. "Why command?" he asked, taking a seat on one end of the couch as she stood, still gaping. He waved a hand, dismissing her thoughts completely. "I figured if we have to share command then maybe we should get to known each other better. I mean tactics and all."

She carefully sat down across from him eyes narrowing. Was the Captain of the Enterprise, Earth's hero really hitting on her? She sighed dejectedly, considering this was the first one on one human interaction she has had without someone trying to kill her, in let's say a year.

"The truth Captain?" she asked, as he leaned back casually.

"Jim, please. I'm not on duty and neither are you." She nodded, finding her voice to continue.

"To piss my mother off. She always wanted me to follow in her footsteps in science. Placing me in school when I was younger that were made for that, and after awhile I just couldn't take it anymore." She replied, as his blue eyes betrayed nothing. "When I enlisted, I sat down with both Captain Pike and Admiral Archer and tell immediately told me that I could take both tracks. Told me if I wanted that I could have a command spot by the time I graduated."

He nodded as if he understood. There was something she couldn't put her finger on, something that lingered beneath the surface of that cocky exterior. This man obviously put the lives of others first before himself. He valued his friendship, a deep friendship, with his Chief CMO and an antagonistic relationship with his First Officer. She hadn't taken those intelligence courses for nothing.

"Do you regret taking this mission at the time?" he asked, curiously leaning forward. It was now obvious that he was looking for something to relate to, someone with a cool head on their shoulders.

"Going after my own mother to make sure she was ok? No I don't." Audrey replied, shifting to sit cross legged. It was painful to see how lonely this man was, and why he felt this way when it was obvious everyone loved him. She was lonely but at least she had an excuse. "I left before Narada. I wasn't even close enough to help save Vulcan or those ships. Truthfully it wasn't until you defeated that damn Romulan that I even heard the bilions of Vulcans perished, that my own friends, people I grew up with were no longer there."

The tears sprang up as they did whenever she thought of friends, even family lost on that very day. She furiously wiped away the angry tears and she felt a hand on her knee. Somehow in the past ten hours, Captain Jame T. Kirk managed to read her like he would a children's book. She gained her composure, unwillingly to let him in that far. At least not yet

"I need to work." She stated simply as he stood up gracefully offering her his hand in understanding.

"I need to be up on the bridge anyhow. I've let the mutineers have the conn way too long." Kirk said, smiling. "Feel free to use to the replicator for any kind of snacks you need. Dinner will be in the mess hall at 1900 hours."

"Thank you Captain. You have no idea what your hospitality means to a lonely person like me." She replied as those eyes just stared at her in understanding.

"Its no problem Commander." He replied easily as he turned to walk out the door. "Oh, one more thing. Since it seems I have acquired you, I am going to need to start scheduling you shifts on the bridge. My orders of course."

Her eyes widened at the prospect. Was he kidding? "You are serious right?" she asked, hoping her excitement didn't show through.

"Why wouldn't I be? I need all more than competent officers on my bridge. You would be a welcome addition to it." He replied, standing casually against the door. "And when we complete this mission successfully, I will gladly fight to have you on board for the rest of our five year mission."

She was too dumbfounded to realize Kirk had said when not if. "Sir, you said when. Why do you believe we can do this?" she asked as his blue eyes stared into her very soul.

"Because, Commander Pearce, I do not believe in no win scenarios." He said, striding out the door. And Audrey swore she could hear him say. "And neither should you."

**Is it sad that I wrote the lines for everyone, going off their characters' voices in my head. I sure hope I got most of it right. Next up...well you shall see. Promise. tomorrow!**


	4. Run Away

**Chp. 4 Run Away**

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything you recognize, except for Audrey. If I did, then I would sandwiched between Bones and Kirk. **

**Author's Note: I put a twist in this chapter only because to go on with the story, it just fit. I also decided to pair Kirk and Audrey together but it will take awhile for them to get there. As yes the adventure is still there. Have fun!**

It had taken less than two days to reach the planet they needed to before the crew moved toward the edge of the Neutral Zone to gain access to whatever was going on out there. In the span of hose days, Audrey had been glued to her computer, downloading and decrypting her files from the message and it turned out to be more difficult than she thought. The only time she had taken break was when the comm station shut down and started flashing she had five minutes to get to the mess hall for food. The Commander knew Bones had hijacked the system to make sure Kirk didn't overdue himself and it was apparent Kirk was doing the same to her.

_Kirk to Pearce_ came over her comm as she jerked away from it, blinking her tired eyes. Damn him, she thought as she accessed the last bit of intelligence.

"Go for Pearce." She said, leaning back in the chair, noticing her joints popping as she did so.

_Just wondering if you wanted to join us up here on the bridge as we resupply the ship and make the necessary modifications?_

Audrey looked over the files carefully, waiting for the last one to decrypt at her own program she installed. That's when she realized she hadn't taken a shower in days and probably needed another clean uniform.

"Give me about fifteen minutes, Captain. I need a shower or otherwise people could be repulsed by me." The red head complied, standing up carefully. "Do you have any clean uniform I could have?"

_I will be waiting Commander. Look in your quarters and you will find what you need. Kirk out._

Her eyebrows went up at his comment and wondered how the hell he got into here without her noticing. Kirk was really a sneaky bastard as she stumbled toward to what she realized was a real shower, with real water and breathed a sigh of relief. How she had not noticed this was beyond her but then she had been staring at the comm unit for the past 24 hours straight except for the break for dinner.

As she turned on the shower, steam filled up her senses and she felt a faint tingling sensation at the back of her mind. Audrey had suspected that only the half Vulcan Spock suspected her abilities and she wished of all times that her mother would stop trying to locate her. Dr. Auriana Dooling, unbeknown to those except High Admirals and the Federation High Officials, and close friends, was half Betazoid and had some fairly impressive empathetic abilities. Audrey's real father, not the one who raised her, and died in service to the Federation, was half Vulcan like the First Officer on this ship.

So because of her interesting heritage, StarFleet and the Federation kept close tabs on her and her mother. Her real father, Kavik, died on Vulcan when she was looking for her mother and felt the raw pain as she thought of that. The red head was not one to shove her emotions to the background and found meditation helped her control both her empathetic and telepathic abilities. She didn't use them on a regular basis and was finally glad to have someone around who could help her center her mind.

As the water bounded down her tense body, she heard the door swish open on Kirk's quarters and reached out lightly to see who it was. Unsurprisingly it was Kirk and she withdrew as she heard him still at the water running.

"Commander?" Kirk inquired as she sighed, reveling in the use of a real shower.

"I told you I needed to take a shower." She yelled as she heard him walk into the bathroom. "And if you think you are going to see me naked, you're wrong."

The young captain chuckled lightly. "As much as I would like that Commander, we just received another transmission from Admiral Pike."

Pearce continued to let the water ease the pain out of her muscles as she calmed her mind, trying not to think of what Pike wanted now. "Did you tell him I was unavailable at the moment?" she replied, as she quickly lathered up to clean all the grime of the past four days off her.

"I told him that you had been working non stop and had only eaten once since arriving on board." Kirk replied, as she turned off the water, as the blond handed her a towel over the bar.

The commander looked around the curtain to see her new captain leaning against the counter, arms crossed lazily. She raised an eyebrow at him as he just smiled. "If you get out of the bathroom, I will eat and appease everyone, promise." Audrey said, as she saw him shake his head and head out the door.

"Ten minutes, Pearce. Mess hall." Kirk yelled as she stepped out of the shower. "And be prepared to be hypoed."

With that Jim Kirk left her in peace and she wondered exactly what she had gotten herself into as she dried herself off, stepping into the guest quarters, only to realize a neatly folded gold command uniform on the bed, with undergarments lying next to it. Audrey smiled as she quickly dressed herself, tugging on her boots as she towel dried her hair and pulled it into a high ponytail.

Pearce eyes the bathroom door, debating whether or not to exit through the captain quarters only to hear raised voices outside. She immediately recognized the low tone of the First Officer and Kirk's passionate tone. Something irked her as she exited the door to see the Captain running his hand through his hair uncomfortably. And she realized, as she opened her emotions up that he knew and was afraid.

Audrey Pearce has been found out.

As Jim exited his quarters, he ran right into Spock, whose infallible exterior never faltered once at seeing his close friend's expression.

"I assume you read the rest of the report I gave you, Captain." Spock inferred, his head cocked to the side.

"Yes and right after you left, we received another transmission from Pike." An eyebrow rose at his comment as they both turned down the corridor, strides matching each other.

Jim stopped for a moment, his mind going a million miles a minute. He had felt the light brush against his mind, as Spock did when needed.

"She is not dangerous, Captain." Spock finally said, inflecting that he knew way before the report about Pearce's abilities.

The blond sighed deeply, running his hair through his hair. This mission was becoming more and more complicated by the minute. Not only had Pike told him that it wasn't a virus that killed those officers and researchers, it was Dooling herself. Audrey had to know that, or she wouldn't have followed the trace left by her mother.

"How do you know that Spock?" he asked, looking directly into his first officer's eyes.

"Why don't you ask me yourself, Captain?" a chilly voice asked behind him, as Jim turned around to see an impeccable dressed Commander Pearce. He smiled sheepishly, his hand dropping to his side.

"I don't even want to know how you snuck up on me, Commander." He stated, as the red head just stood there, arms crossed, hazel eyes staring directly at him. The staring contest continued for a few moments until Jim sighed. "I apologize Commander. I did not mean to imply…"

Finally the coldness in her eyes recessed as she waved her hand dismissively. "No, I am the one who should apologize Captain. I should have told you and Dr. McCoy straight away when I was injured." She said, looking behind him at Spock. "He must have sensed me as soon as I beamed aboard. I'm good but not that good."

"That you are not, Commander." Spock replied, as her eyes narrowed minutely. "Your lack of control is due to not having any others around you. It is…understandable."

If Jim hadn't been well versed in Spock body language and speak, he wouldn't have noticed the slight slouch of Pearce's shoulders at the Vulcan's statement.

"Your biological deposition is quite…fascinating." Spock continued as Jim just stood there, watching the two bait each other back and forth.

"Her what?" Jim asked, looking directly as her. She huffed, glaring at Spock as the Vulcan maintained a calm exterior and if the captain was the correct, his first officer was enjoying the interaction.

Audrey centered her gaze on him, her hazel eyes meeting his head on and as soon as she did, he felt the warmth encompass him, as a slight pressure against his mind. The blond stood there for a moment as she finished, probably to prove a point to the other person with telepathic abilities.

"As much as I like to be the center of attention, would you please explain to me what you just did?" Kirk asked, as the beauty before him shrugged shamelessly.

"I'm quarter Betazoid, quarter Vulcan, and half human." She explained as she started walking closer to him as he turned with Spock, heading toward the turbolift. He waited for her to continue, his curiosity spiked. Jim had been in contact with other em-paths, on Tarsus, and knew how dangerous they could be in they weren't in control of their abilities. He shuddered involuntarily at the memory as he felt the same warmth, comfort surround him. Jim had to admit, Pearce was good and she knew exactly what emotion to convey when needed. Spock was right, Audrey was not dangerous, not like…

"Captain…" her voice interrupted her thoughts as Spock just stood there, Vulcan mask in place. They did not need to know his horrible past, only Bones knew but only because he had almost self destructed during that month in Starfleet History class.

"Sorry. You were saying?" he replied, his emotions in check, captain facade in place, his blue eyes meeting hers.

"I have control of my empathic and telepathic powers, Captain. I was well trained." She said, as they entered the lift to take them to Deck Eight where the mess hall was. "And I know my mother killed those people. It happened the…"

And then it suddenly hit Jim and he turned to look at Pearce directly. "She was still bonded to your father?"

"After the man I called Dad, died, she returned to Vulcan to be bonded to my father. " Her voice faltered, as he realized she had not lost one but two men who were important to her.

"The day those people were killed, was the day…" Jim let his words falter, as he felt an all encompassing sadness around him. So many people lost on that day, so many senseless lives snuffed out.

"When the bond ended, she lost control." Pearce said, reaching over stopping the turbolift. "and took the research with her."

Tears were rolling down her cheeks now and Jim had a sudden urge to wipe them away. There was more to her story, he knew it but decided not to push. Right now, they had a mission and they needed to complete it. Nor was he going to give into the urge to comfort the woman in front of him because that meant he may like her and he didn't want another complication.

"So Pike said she may try to contact you. Is that why you were at Delta Vega?" Jim asked, as Pearce hurriedly wiped her eyes and pressed the reset button.

"Yes and no. I followed the faint trace of our bond there only to find it ended there. Either someone has taken her against her will or she doesn't want me to find her because its too dangerous for me. " she said as they stopped, door opening to reveal the bustling level that was Recreation and the Mess Hall. "And the virus is a real threat. If my mother has been taken against her will, its only time before the Klingons and Romulans have that virus and unleash it."

As Jim exited the turbolift, his head nodding once understanding what the commander said, as everyone they passed stood up straight, saluting their captain. Jim nodded to each of his crew members, whom he always made sure to acknowledge on or off duty. But people seemed to get out of their way more quickly than usual and he realized the them of must have a intimidating presence as they entered the mess hall.

Bones noticed them, expression darkening upon laying eyes on Audrey, who only seemed to stand up straighter upon seeing the doctor. Jim noticed that the table was stocked with food, as Spock went his separate way to join Nyota and Chapel, who were already discussing something animatedly.

"Looks like Bones has already gotten us our breakfast." The captain said, as he and Audrey stood facing the now somewhat complacent doctor. He did notice though the hypos sitting next to him and knew immediately the two of them were in trouble.

"Nice of you to join us, Commander. I had the replicator make us all good food." Bones replied, the glint in his eyes baiting any of them to argue.

"High calories, low vitamins." Audrey replied, taking the bait as she sat down across from his CMO. "Feeling sorry for me Doctor?"

Jim hid a smile as he surveyed the food in front of him, pancakes, eggs, bacon, sausage and was that grits? He plopped down next to Audrey and shoveled as much food in his mouth as he could. That is when he realized…

"Oh my God, Doctor did you actually cook this?" Audrey exclaimed, the happiness and comfort radiating off of her in waves. Bones just raised an eyebrow as the blond continued eating happily. He knew that the southern doctor cooked, he did many times while at the Academy when he had difficult shifts at the hospital or when Jim had a down day. For Bones to suspect that Pearce needed a good meal, just spoke volumes on how the doctor viewed the hybrid now on the Enterprise.

As they finished eating the hearty meal, Bones got out the hypos as Audrey cringed visibly. Jim knew it was coming as he hadn't eaten either since dinner over 24 hours ago. "Now its time for those vitamins." Bones said almost gleefully. Sometimes Jim regretted making the doctor his Chief Medical Officer, and this one was one of those times.

As two painful hypos to the neck, and Audrey was miraculously fit for duty, Bones swept up the empty plates and left the two in command gold to their thoughts.

Audrey rubbed her neck tenderly. "You are right, he is a menace with those hypos." She said, as Jim stood up noticing the time.

"I need to go and be up on the bridge for the docking." Jim said carefully, as she nodded. "Please forward me what you need supply wise and I will send Spock down to get it."

Hazel eyes looked at him questioningly, as if telling him that she should go down instead and then she relented. "After you send that, you can come up to my ready room and we can debrief Pike on what our next move can be."

With that Jim turned and left leaving a baffled Audrey Pearce behind, trying to get his obvious emotions under control. Bones wasn't attracted to her but his best friend certainly knew the Captain was.

Jim was running away again and he knew deep down it was the wrong thing to do.

**Reviews are love. I will try to update soon, as the good part are coming up soon!**


	5. Let the Fireworks Begin

A/N: Finally an update for this story! The fireworks begin..

**Chp. 5 Let the Fireworks Begin**

The Captain found Audrey hours later in the gym, her hair tied in a braid, eyes closed on the mat in the far side of the room. Sitting crossed legged next to her was Spock, both in what appeared to a meditative stance, and yet Jim kept his eyes trained on the red haired woman. Her features, which earlier had held a slight tension, were now relaxed, and it created a beautiful picture to him.

There was no doubt in his mind that he was attracted to the petite Commander, yet here she was entrusting Spock in her troubles instead of him. The green eyed monster named jealousy sprouted the moment he saw the two together - and it wasn't going away anytime soon.

"Jim, you do realize that the pointy eared hobgoblin is the only one qualified enough to help center Audrey, right?" Bones sounded behind him, causing the blond hair man jump. "And yes Uhura does know about this, she was the one who suggested it."

Jim bit his lip in embarrassment, knowing full well that the two across the room felt the spike of jealousy. He turned around to face his best friend, who just stood there gazing across the room, arms crossed. "Did you just come here to bother me, or did you have a reason to find her?" he asked, blue eyes looking at the woman meditating.

"I came to make sure that she was doing what I recommended she do," the doctor replied, hazel eyes trying to meet his. "She's been away from people for too long, Jim. If Spock wasn't here, she could have posed a danger to crew."

He sighed knowingly. They had received all the supplies they needed, and were going to be on their way shortly from the starbase they were docked at. "Is there anything new from Uhura?" he asked, distracting himself.

Bones shook his head. "She had to enlist the help of Chekov and Scotty to decrypt the Commander's files. According to the Lieutenant, she would be surprised if they could the information to us within two days."

Jim nodded. "She's good, exceptional actually, at intelligence from what I hear from Pike. Starfleet recruited her for her hacking talents, amongst other things."

His friend rolled his eyes. "What isn't she good at?" he asked, when Spock appeared out of nowhere next them, dressed in his casual blacks, leaving Audrey alone on the mat.

Before Spock could interrupt, a harried Janice Rand appeared at the door. "Yes, Yeoman Rand?" Jim asked, as she held out a PADD to him.

"This just came through, Captain. I think the Commander needs to look at this right away," she said, leaving him with the information. When he looked at the file, he realized it had the highest clearance codes a file could get, and sighed. This was definitely something he could not access, even with his clearance.

Before interrupting a rather important healing session with Audrey, he went to the ship's interface and called to Uhura. "Captain Kirk to Bridge," he said, leaning slightly against the bulkhead.

"Yes Captain?" Uhura answered instead of Sulu, who had the conn for the time being.

"When did this file come through?" he asked, watching as two identical eyebrows rose up at his question.

"Ten minutes ago. It's a combination of the file Pike sent and one on the files Commander Pearce downloaded. Chekov and Scotty tried their hardest sir, but they couldn't get through." The edge to Nyota's voice did not go unnoticed by the Captain.

"Good work, Lieutenant. Keep working and notify when anything else comes up. Kirk out." Jim's head swiveled toward Commander Pearce, who was still sitting on the floor, but had opened one eye, well aware of the tension in the room.

She sighed, pushing herself up on her knees, stretching slightly, working out whatever kinks in her muscles before standing fully. She motioned them over, holding out her hand anxiously for the PADD Jim was holding.

The captain couldn't help but admire the body in the form fitting gym clothes she had, the other two men staying back, watching the encounter. Without saying a word, he handed Audrey the tablet, her brown eyes looking at the file carefully.

Looking at her watch, she nodded admiringly. "I hope you told the Lieutenant she did a good job, Captain. She got that file faster than I thought she would[," s]he said, taking the stylus and punching in a series of numbers that had to be her security clearance code. Her mouth pursed a moment, before she scrolled to a part that made her frown. "Oh this is not good…"

Jim had the decency to remain quiet for a few moments, watching as her brown eyes flicked back and forth reading whatever what in the file she was given. Whatever it was it wasn't good, judging from the darkening look in her eyes. Her head shot up suddenly, looking at the two other men in the room.

Audrey stalked toward them, completely ignoring Jim, when she handed Spock the PADD. The captain scrambled to catch up when she went the intercom and summoned Uhura.

"Commander Pearce to Bridge."

"Bridge. Go ahead Commander," Sulu's voice replied, when Jim noticed Spock hand over the PADD to Bones who took it questioningly.

"I need an emergency patch through to Admiral Pike. I will be up in the conference room in a few minutes," Audrey's said urgently, tone not to be argued with.

"Aye Commander. What codes do you want transmitted?" Nyota's voice replied.

"The highest ones you have, Lieutenant."

"It is done, Commander. The Admiral will be at your disposal any moment now."

Audrey's face softened a bit as if she remembered something. "Oh and Lieutenant? Good job on the decryption, you did it faster than I thought you would."

"Thank you, Commander. I will continue working on the other files while you are on the call. Bridge out."

Audrey then turned around, noticing Jim for the first time, her eyes blazing with fury. "You told me this was my mission right; that you would follow my lead, my orders if needed?"

Jim nodded. "That is correct, Commander. What can I assist you with?"

Her gaze held his, something more in her eyes than fury. "Let me talk to Pike alone. He knows more than he's letting on." He nodded, waiting for her to continue. "When I'm ready I'll debrief you more."

Jim was left dazed and bit confused watching as Audrey strutted out the door and Jim couldn't help but admire the view. He could have sworn that she had swayed her hips at the end, when Bones tapped him on the shoulder, interrupting his reverie, silently handing the PADD with the offensive file.

"You need to read this, Jim," his best friend said quietly, before Spock walked out the door. Jim was almost afraid to read the file but forced himself to.

Blue eyes trained on the words in front of him, he read the files thoroughly. The first part wasn't that interesting, but it was the second part and secondly the names associated with this project that garnered his interest. His heart raced as he continued reading, his breath hitching when the information hit it.

"Oh God," he breathed. "Are you sure this is true Bones?"

The doctor nodded, placing a hand comfortingly on his shoulder. "This is why Audrey is talking to Pike alone, Jim, because this could get you too emotionally vested."

"This can't be Bones. This man, this name hasn't been active in years."

"That is why it has the highest security clearance, Jim. Starfleet can't have any others know about this, especially with Dr. Dooling missing."

Jim closed his eyes, hyperventilating. "You don't understand, Bones. This man is dead, I saw him die. At least I think I did."

"According to this, Kodos isn't dead."

Blue eyes opened, clear as day. "If this is true then, Kodos is the one who wanted Dooling and her work."

The southern doctor just nodded. "That means he's the one controlling the Klingons and Romulans. He must have promised them something powerful enough to get them working together. Jesus, Bones, do you know what this means?"

"Jim, are you ok?" The hand on his shoulder squeezed gently, shaking Jim out of his stupor.

"No, Bones I'm not." He gritted, balling his fists. "Only twelve of us survived what could he possibly be after?"

"I don't know, kid, but I think the newest officer on this ship is about to find out." The captain remembered the blazing fury in her eyes, and he suspected Audrey already knew. So that meant she knew about Tarsus, she knew everything and had been correct in her assumption to keep him in the dark.

Jim looked at the caring eyes of his best friend who was just waiting for him and the blond just sighed. "I need to get a hold of Sam." Bones nodded, steering him toward the door.

This mission was getting more complicated by the minute and it hadn't even begun.

The minute Audrey read the file Captain Kirk had given her she knew she had to get out of there. She knew the close friendship between the doctor and Kirk, so she knew handing the file off to the two men was the right decision. What she didn't like was leaving the man who saved her in the dark.

Audrey knew Kirk from the Academy, knew what his parents accomplished and how hard he had to fight to live up to that image. However, the material transmitted from the last two locations she thought her mother was at, brought more suspicion and intrigue.

So when she had requested a file transfer from Pike about a certain situation that had taken place thirteen years ago, the Admiral almost balked. Audrey knew exactly what happened on that planet, her own father was one of many officers sent to Tarsus IV to rescue those lone survivors. What she didn't know what one James T. Kirk and his older brother, one George Samuel Kirk, were two of them.

Of course their names had been changed to protect them, but the last burst of transmission she had garnered from the ships that had attacked her only solidified her suspicions. Kodos was alive and well, and wanted her mother.

Two empaths, one delirious with grief the other set upon revenge, were no match for a Federation ship. Now she knew where Starfleet was wrong, her mother hadn't been the one to kill those people at her lab. This file proved so and she wanted Pike to confirm her beliefs.

Somewhere deep inside, a sigh of relief released itself when she realized her mother wasn't a killer. Yes she was doing questionable things, but she wasn't a murderer.

Sliding in the conference room, the Commander was greeted with the somber face of the man who had taken her under his wing during her time at the Academy. She stood for a moment, glaring at him for a full minute before beginning the conversation.

"When were you gonna let me know what you suspected?" Audrey asked, arms crossed, waiting for an appropriate answer. "I trusted you. Why does this come to my attention now?"

His blue eyes darkened causing her to reassess what she thought. "You didn't know until you looked at the evidence Command gave you?" Pike nodded. "Crap. Why keep this from us? Why send me on this mission at all if they suspected it was Kodos all along?"

Admiral Pike's was all she needed. "You're kidding me right? They wanted to me to go after them, knowing full well that after awhile, I would fall into trouble and call upon the Enterprise! They want to draw him out, using Kirk as bait!" Audrey flailed in the air angrily. Pike just stared, the only reaction he allowed to show was the slight frown on his face. "Wait a minute, you mean they are using Kirk and me as bait?"

Audrey banged her fist on the table, carefully keeping her anger in check. "Are you going to say anything?" she asked, brown eyes pleading. That mad man had the only family she had left, yet Starfleet found it imperative to make her think her own mother could kill people. "Can you say anything?"

Pike sighed heavily. "I can. I just don't want to, then it makes it all real. Komack and Archer are the only others who do not know the real mission. Audrey, please listen to me. You cannot…" Christopher Pike stopped, reading the tense lines on her face. "You let him read it?"

"I didn't. I gave it to Commander Spock, who in return gave it to Doctor McCoy. From there, I do not know." Audrey replied tersely. "Though I imagine, McCoy gave it to Captain Kirk."

"You certainly know how to bend orders, Commander," Pike replied dryly causing her to shrug indifferently.

"I would want to know if it had to do with me, Admiral. I also imagine he is going to want to contact his brother."

"This is the logical assumption Commander, however I must interject as more pertinent and urgent information just became readily available," Spock interrupted, causing Audrey to turn around abruptly to face him. Spock nodded to the Admiral, who in turn nodded tersely.

"Audrey, you need to stop Kirk from contacting his brother." Pike said, causing both heads to snap up suddenly. Narrowing her eyes, she continued reading the PADD Spock handed to her. She met his soulful brown eyes, a question in them.

"You need to have Lieutenant Uhura reroute outgoing transmissions to Earth. Jim cannot know what has happened." Audrey said, her eyes then meeting Pike's. "How long have you known, Chris?"

"A few hours. The ransom message came through Barnett's desk five hours ago; he only let me know when I tried reaching you before." The two Commanders just stared at him. "Hey I tried, but apparently the Lieutenant and whoever she had helping her were extremely good at decoding high clearance messages."

"I have the best crew there is in Starfleet, Admiral. You should know, you handpicked them yourself," the Captain's voice sounded causing Audrey to whip around, only to see troubled blue eyes. "Why can I not reach my brother, Commander, Admiral?"

The red head looked over her shoulder, only to see Pike nod to her. She handed the PADD over the captain, who took it gingerly, when she met the angry hazel eyes that belonged the CMO. "I think this will explain everything, Captain," she whispered, stepping back. The shock that emanated from Kirk almost caused her to collapse, but she closed her mind down so she could do her job.

"That monster has my brother." Jim's voice said roughly. Audrey nodded, carefully taking the tablet back and placing the offensive thing on the table behind her.

"And my mother. She didn't kill those people, he did." Audrey said, trying to get him to meet her eyes. "Look at me, Jim. Look at me."

Still refusing to look at her, Audrey enlisted the help of his best friend, who only shook his head. Kirk's face settled in a rigid line, his jaw hard as he digested the information. "This is why I don't like empaths, Commander and exactly why I don't trust them."

His blue eyes chose to meet hers then, and all she saw was anguish and anger, mainly at her. He had every right to be, considering she didn't want him to know. Audrey wasn't the one who could possibly be emotionally compromised, he was. All she wanted to do was protect him.

Yeah, that worked out well. So she decided to come from a different approach. "Captain, you told me this was my show. You would follow whatever I chose to, am I correct?" His eyes did not soften one bit.

"Maybe I was wrong."

Audrey almost reeled from that, knowing he trusted her to a degree since Pike did. "Son," Pike spoke up causing Jim to react finally. "Listen to me. You are more than capable to captain the Enterprise. Starfleet has the utmost faith in you, however I thought it best that you did not the circumstances until we knew more."

"Faith, right. What you wanted to do is make sure I didn't do something foolhardy, like you know, go after him[,]" Kirk said angrily. "Thanks for the act of faith Admiral, but I have grown up. This crew is my first priority but I am sure they would gladly follow me to his rescue."

"Jim…" Bone spoke up, his voice soothing.

"Don't pander me, Bones. Something about this doesn't sit right? What aren't you telling me?" Jim said, waving his arms grandly awaiting an answer.

Audrey looked at Pike whose poker face was crumbling. "Starfleet is using us as bait, Jim so that we can draw Kodos out." she said, looking straight at him. "They wanted to me to go after my mother, knowing exactly who has her, knowing that I would come to you for help if I needed it. From what I gathered, he is using my mother's research to get revenge on the Federation."

Stone hard blue eyes told her to keep going. What was it about this man that made her feel like this? "What I am saying Jim, is that Kodos took my mother, and your brother to ensure our cooperation."

"So?"

"Do you remember who came to your rescue, Jim? On Tarsus?" she asked, not looking away from him. His blue eyes flicked toward Pike for a moment before meeting hers again. "Well it wasn't only Starfleet but Vulcans assisted also."

"Why are you so calm about this? It's your mother too, you know."

She sighed heavily only to have Pike answer for her. "Trust me Kirk, she is. Commander Pearce is good at hiding her emotions. Ask Spock, he will tell you how turbulent her emotions are at this moment." Pike glared at him. "So do not take your anger out on her, Captain Kirk. This is a horrible situation and you can do something about it."

Something in Kirk's face softened at that moment, when he looked at her, blue eyes searching. "Okay. What can we do without risking the lives of Sam and Dr. Dooling?"

Pike sighed. "I will send you the ransom message, but the rest is up to guys. You brought down Nero, I'm sure you can get Kodos." He looked at the four people in the room. "Work together, stay together. You will come up with something wacky, and out of this universe, but in the end it will work. I have complete faith in all of you."

Kirk and Audrey nodded. "Good luck and keep me updated on whatever insane plan you have. Pike out."

The screen went black, leaving the room in an eerie glow. "I am sorry Commander, for my anger," Jim said, looking at her.

"Someone once said to me that apologizing is a sign of weakness." Audrey said, wanting to move forward and give the man a hug but something stopped her. "However it was to be expected. If you had done the same to me, I probably would have reacted the same."

Jim nodded. "Spock?"

"Yes Captain?"

"Can you assist Lieutenant Uhura and Ensign Chekov with the transmission Admiral Pike sent?" Spock acknowledged the order and left the room promptly leaving Jim, Audrey and McCoy.

"I still have to sift through my mother's research to ascertain exactly what Kodos is after and develop some kind of cure just in case he does release what she working on." Audrey said, sitting on the edge of the table. "And once Spock and Uhura figure out what Kodos wants, we need to have a battle plan."

McCoy spoke up first. "You do know, Audrey that you are the only one who could possibly fend off Kodos in a fight?" he said, his eyes laying on Jim.

Audrey cocked her head to side. "Are you saying that because of my abilities or because I could best the Captain in hand to hand combat?"

McCoy shrugged. "Both."

Jim glared at his friend. "Thanks Bones for the great confidence boost."

"Only telling the truth, kid."

"Right… wait a minute how do you know she could best me in hand to hand?" Jim asked, his eyes narrowing. Bones raised his hands up in surrender.

"I'm a doctor, not a fighter." Audrey snorted, when Jim turned to her, a mischievous smile on his face and she knew she was in trouble.

"So Commander… how about a match? You and me in the gym in say fifteen minutes?" Jim said, eyes traveling up and down her body. Meeting his eyes, anxious to prove how good she was, she smiled.

"You're on. Winner treats the other to dinner. Deal?" Audrey held out her hand as Jim shook it.

"Deal. See you in fifteen minutes Commander," he said, prancing out of the room, a determined glint in his eyes.

The red head look at the doctor, who was smirking slightly. "Should I be worried?"

"If I were you…probably. Jim fighting off his anger tends to get him into trouble." Audrey looked at the door contemplating.

"If you say so. He has no idea what he got himself into." She said, walking past McCoy before turning to look straight. "By the way, how do you resist that smile?"

He tried to keep a straight face and failed, laughing. "Darlin' you have got it bad. That smile is the one he used to woo women."

"Excuse me, Doctor, but I do not have it bad," Audrey said, walking out the door, McCoy following behind her, as they continued to bicker. "I did not fall for that smile. No way."

"Just wait, Audrey. That smile ain't nothing when he really wants something."

"He's not getting anything, except for a whooping." McCoy laughed harder.

"We'll see darlin', we'll see."

Man Kirk can be so demanding. As is Pike. *Sigh* More to come soon!


	6. Insane Plans

**Sorry for the delay. I have one more chapter in the works and am working on more! Hope you are enjoying!**

Audrey found herself back in the gym for the second time in a hour, not that she was complaining. She had been out of touch with civilization for months, and sparring could help her work out her tension. She just didn't expect it to be against the captain of the Enterprise, as she deflected the punch directed at her. Backing away from the golden boy, panting hard trying to gauge what Kirk could do next.

Blue eyes started back at her, determination shining through. Jim was bouncing from foot to foot, waiting for her. "You're good," he stated. Audrey shook her head, and went to swipe his feet from under when he just jumped over her leg, and aimed a kick at her head which she ducked.

Rolling back up into a crouch, the petite woman glared at him. "Better than you think, Captain," she replied, when they attacked each other in a flurry of kicks and punches, each deflected by the other. Audrey was still clad in the figure hugging gym clothes she had on earlier, and had tried the female art of distraction to advantage.

Considering how close Kirk was to winning, it appeared that he being shirtless and sweaty was actually distracting her. Closing her eyes and envisioning something that wasn't a shirtless Kirk, she centered herself enough to dodge the right hook Kirk aimed at her.

He laughed. "You dodged my hand with your eyes closed. Cheating much?" Audrey glared back at him.

"Sometimes in a fight you can't always use your eyes. You have to sense what is around you, for instance, when you step off into a kick, your left leg moves more than necessary, creating a soft but telltale sound you're about to strike."

The blond hair man held up his hands in surrender. "Then by all means, show me Commander."

Audrey smirked. "Close your eyes Captain, and use your other senses." He closed his gorgeous blue eyes, remaining in the fighting stance. Walking silently to the back of him, the red hair woman gauged his other reflexes.

He turned around abruptly, reaching out and grabbing a hold of her wrist, and proceeded to flip her over on the mat, hard. Trying to catch her breath, she looked up at the still closed eyes of the handsome playboy. Noticing he still had hold on her, she tugged him down, sending one foot out to sweep his feet from underneath him. Taking advantage of the hold, she rolled and landed on top of him.

Blue eyes opened to meet hers, mirth sparkling inside of them. "I win." She said simply, pinning his arms over his head, straddling his chest. Jim stilled at her movements, holding her gaze. Their heads closed enough for her to feel his breath against her lips, when clapping interrupted both of them.

Audrey jumped up startled, as both of their heads swiveled toward the man who had interrupted them. Doctor McCoy just stood there smirking, and shrugged. "I take it you two forgot I was here." He said, tossing towels to both of them. "I have to say though, that was an interesting display of dominance."

Feeling Jim's hands on her waist, Audrey rolled off of him onto her knees, shaking her head. "Dominance? Please that was just us taking out our anger and aggression on each other." She said, watching as Jim's muscles rippled as he sat up, wiping his sweat with the towel thrown at him.

"You two were in a zone that is for sure." McCoy said, stepping up on the raised mat with his tri corder, waving it. "So who's first?"

Two groans met his question at Jim just flopped back down on the mat, waving his friend on, turning to look at Audrey, who was drinking from a water bottle McCoy had set down. "You are good."

She smiled lightly. "How did you know I was behind you?"

The Captain laughed, causing McCoy to growl. "You have a distinct smell, Commander." Audrey just looked at him. "It's true. I noticed your request for your toiletries. Vanilla and strawberries wasn't it?"

Audrey leaned down and got the gold t shirt Kirk had shed right before their fight and threw it at him hard. He caught it, and whipped it at McCoy who at turned to her. "Don't mind him, darlin', he's a nosy captain, always getting into people's business."

Before McCoy could ask her how her ribs were doing, klaxons and red alert warning rang throughout the ship. Jim shot up, putting on his shirt in record time, and immediately headed toward the bridge, Audrey not far behind.

"Bridge to Captain Kirk."

Kirk looked around for the nearest interface, and leaped toward it. "Go ahead Spock."

Audrey knew that the ship was still docked with the Starbase, awaiting the decryption of the message Kodos sent, so if the base went on Red Alert then so did the Enterprise.

"The sensors show three Cardissian ships on the horizon, Captain. According to my readings, two are armed at full strength, yet one is barely limping along. Lifeforms on boards show weak life signals."

Jim let out a breath, looking at her. "I'm on my way up now, Spock. Is the starbase willing to let us un dock?"

Scotty answered instead. "Aye sir. The lassie is ready when you are."

Audrey placed a hand on his shoulder to stop him. "Let's get up there before we engage, Captain."

Jim turned to look at her carefully. "You have a gut feeling about this?"

She closed her eyes briefly. "More than a gut feeling. Dammit, I need to get up there."

"Spock, do not do anything until we are on the bridge. Kirk out." Jim and Audrey managed to get to the bridge within two minutes, and the image on the screen disturbed them both.

Spock got up from the command chair, as Jim settled down into it, looking as if he belonged. Audrey stood to his right, feeling kind of useless as the bridge buzzed around her. "Lieutenant Uhura, any transmissions coming from those ships?"

The Commander turned around to see Nyota purse her lips in annoyance while looking at the screen. "No sir. None whatsoever, just the usual chatter around the sector, and nothing in Cardissian."

"Captain, a second ship has powered down and is registering weak life signals." Spock sounded, Sulu and Chekov waiting for their orders.

Captain Kirk looked at the doctor, who in turned waved away the poor ensign manning a station next to the chair. "On it, Jim. Spock can you forward me those readings?"

"I have sent the life form readings to that station Doctor."

"Bones, what can you tell from the readings?" Jim asked, watching Audrey slip closer and closer to his station, when an ensign at the intelligence station started muttering curses. Three heads whipped around the poor ensign, whose face was beet red. "Something wrong Ensign Friedman?"

"Uh, I have been trying to access the Cardissian ship's computer system to locate where they were last. However, the security and firewall are giving me some problems."

Jim nodded. "I have the utmost faith in you Ensign. Keep working on it."

The poor ensign shifted in his seat, barely noticing that Audrey had made her way to him. Leaning over his shoulder, she looked over what the ensign was doing. "Can I be of assistance Ensign?" she asked, tired of feeling useless.

"I can't seem to get past this firewall. I am familiar with Cardissian ship systems but this is beyond my knowledge." He said pointing to a particular section on his screen. She knew exactly what he had missed.

"Ensign, I know what you missed. Can I try?" the Commander asked, when the green eyes of Friedman's looked relieved. He promptly got up and waved her into his seat.

"By all means Commander, this station is all yours." He replied, allowing the red head to sit down, hunching over the station. She did feel the inquiring gaze of the captain on her back, but ignored it, using her hacking skills to access the other ship's computer.

Soon, she knew what she was looking. "Ha!" she exclaimed hands up in victory.

The ensign behind her blew out an excited breath. "Whoa. That was amazing." He said, causing Jim to turn toward her.

"What is the cause of excitement over there Commander?" Kirk inquired. Audrey spun in her seat staring straight at him.

"I hacked the computer signal…"

"In record time I might add." Ensign Friedman interrupted causing her to smile brilliantly at him.

"Thank you Ensign. As I was saying, I hacked the signal and I managed to get their security feed." Audrey felt the rush of the adrenaline cease as she noticed more and more of the beings on the ship drop dead. "I think you need to see this."

"Put it on the screen Commander." She typed in the code and suddenly the dead bodies of Cardissians and some other humanoid form appear before them. The crew was well trained enough to not audibly gasp at the image but tension and anger was reeling off them in waves. Sometimes it really did suck to be able to read minds and emotions.

She let the ensign sit at his station again as moved toward the command chair. This was what she had lived for, the hustle and bustle of a star ship. The chair drew her, like she was supposed to be here, willing and able to captain a ship like this.

The more she gravitated toward the center of the bridge, the more she realized that what drew her to the chair was not the chair itself, but the enigma of the man sitting in the chair. Even with all her years at the Academy yearning to become Captain, that chair still called to her. Or maybe it was the man sitting in it.

She decided to interrupt her own train of thought by looking at the screen ahead of her. Dr. McCoy and Spock were both studying the images carefully, when she hissed noticing some bodies were leaking blood. Yes this was definitely some of her mother's work.

"I need to get on that ship," Audrey stated, causing the entire bridge to look at her.

"You can't… I mean, you don't know what is killing those people." Jim said eyes frantic. Audrey stared him down.

"I need. To get. On that ship." Audrey emphasized looking at Spock and McCoy for assistance who just stared at him.

"Why do you need to get on a ship that is obviously contaminated?" Kirk asked, making Audrey sigh.

"Because I know what's killing them, and if I don't get there right now, the people on this star base could too."

..st.

Jim could not believe his ears when he heard Audrey say she needed to get on one of the dying Cardissian ships. His protective instincts riled up thinking of his…no. She's a commander, not his woman, at least not yet.

However, upon hearing that she knew what was killing those poor souls on the ships and that it could possibly travel to the innocents here at the base, Jim felt like he had no choice. Sometimes the needs of many outweigh the needs of one.

"How do you propose you do that without possibly spreading of the illness on the Enterprise?" the Captain asked, when he met the determined gaze of a very talented half Betazoid.

"Doctor do you have decontamination chamber in Med Bay or any labs on the Enterprise?" Pearce asked, the Doctor who looked insulted she would ask that.

"Of course we do, Commander. Space is disease and danger wrapped in darkness and silence.*" he said, as Jim tried to stifle a laugh. Of course Bones would use the line when disease was mentioned.

"Don't patronize me, Doctor. I was just asking." Audrey retorted, looking back at the screen. "And I assume you have hazmat suits also?"

McCoy just leveled her with a stare that he used on Jim many times. "Okay…" she looked at Jim. "Can I get a hold of Scotty?"

"What kind of insane are you planning, woman?" McCoy ranted, making Jim let out the laugh he's been holding. It was nice not to be at the end of Bone's rants for once.

Audrey turned to face the doctor directly, arms crossed. "What I am planning doctor is to beam aboard the ship, in a hazmat suit, gather the blood and air sample and be beamed back to the decontamination chamber." She replied, glaring at him. "That way I don't place this crew in danger. Got any better ideas?"

"How about, I don't know, NOT going?"

"What better way to find a cure than to actually get blood samples instead of off files?" Audrey retorted as the two hovered toward each, causing Jim to stand between. Placing a hand on Bones chest, and holding the other one toward Audrey, he stared them down.

"Now children, now is not the time to be fighting," he said, making Audrey to take a step back. "Bones, she is right. Someone has to get onboard that ship to figure out what killed them. You can't save them but you can save others by letting her go."

His best friends gaze softened, finally listening to Jim's reasoning. "Fine, Jim but at least let me go with her. The faster we can get in and out of there, the more time we have in finding a cure."

Jim looked back at Audrey, whose eyes were averted to the floor. She still wasn't used to not being a lone wolf, something he totally related to. However he had to get it through her head she wasn't in this alone. "Commander?"

Her brown eyes looked straight at McCoy. "You follow my lead, and do not stray ok?" she finally said. Jim sighed in relief and stepped away from them only to have Spock stand next to him.

"Captain I must insist that I accompany Doctor McCoy and Commander Pearce." Spock said, as Jim spared a glance at Nyota, who only had a resigned look on her face. Spock must have said or portrayed something in their bond to get that reaction of her. He made a mental note to ask her about it later.

"If you insist, Spock. Commander, gather your supplies and I will have Scotty meet you down in the transporter room." Jim said, watching at the three most important people to him walked toward the turbolift. "Oh and Commander Pearce?"

Audrey turned around and let her emotions show. He felt the comfort she conveyed and felt a weird tug at his heart. "Yes Captain?"

"Please don't get my First Officer and Chief Medical Officer sick. I don't need them whining about it the entire mission." He said, getting a Vulcan eyebrow and a glare thrown in his direction. However, he knew Audrey translated as "I care about you too, so don't go do anything stupid."

She smiled brightly at him. "No worries, Captain. I will make sure these two are well taken care of."

Jim nodded as the three climbed into the lift together, hearing Spock say "Commander, I must relay that I do not whine. Such actions are illogical," and all he heard what laughter in return when the doors closed.

He looked at Nyota, who was trying to feign professionalism when in fact she was worried. "Lieutenant?" he inquired, making her look at him.

"Yes Captain?"

"He won't get hurt." She gave him a look that asked did he know. "Oh come on, I'm not there. How much trouble could they get in?"

She relented and nodded. "Besides, I know you're monitoring his frequency."

That comment earned him a stylus lobbed at his head. "Hey I thought it was against regulation to throw anything at your captain." He said, trying not to laugh. He was just glad he could take her mind of the ships in front of them.

"Some rules are worth bending, Captain, especially if it can knock some sense into you." Nyota retorted, returning to her original position of facing away from him.

Still he wondered, how much trouble could those three get into? Jim knew he was about to find out, if those three didn't try to strangle each other first.


	7. Overloaded Senses

Now its begins to get interesting...

**Chp.7 Overloaded Senses**

Audrey, McCoy and Spock found themselves in the middle of the Cardissian ship's sickbay, surrounded by nothing. It was eerily quiet, hearing her breath filtered in the suit, the others in her ear. There were definitely people on this ship, their essences dimmed but still alive. Audrey, however, couldn't place her finger on the strange emotions coming from around her.

"It's good to know I got here in one piece, with this thing on," McCoy grumbled, his tri corder whirling in the air. She rolled her eyes, her own tri corder set to different setting than the other two. The petite Commander had a gut instinct on what virus had been released.

"Doctor, I cannot comprehend why you must insist on degrading the transporter…" Spock replied, making Audrey shake her head, catching the slight amusement off the Vulcan.

"How about you two stop your bickering and we actually get to those dead bodies?" She mumbled into her headset, as the two men quieted. "Dr. McCoy, where does your tri corder place some of the life forms?"

McCoy looked at Spock, who raised an eyebrow in return. "Do either one of you have any idea where to start looking for the Cardissians?"

The two remained silent. "Fine, McCoy you start in here and work your way up to the upper deck. Spock you start in the engineering sections, and I'll take the quarters and bridge."

"We're splitting up?" The CMO sputtered.

"If we split up, the faster we get this done and get back on the Enterprise." Without any retort, McCoy nodded and Audrey turned to find her way up the bridge. What she needed to do is find the nearest computer terminal and learn the layout of the ship.

"What are you sensing Commander?" Spock asked, causing her to jump. "I apologize, I did not intend to frighten you."

Audrey blew out the breath she was holding and waved her hand. "It's ok, Spock. I just feel something strange."

Spock cocked his head slightly, his breath fogging up the transparent plate. "Then I should accompany you on the journey to the bridge. My sensors show no life forms in the engineering or any such sections. These life forms do appear dead."

Audrey groaned inwardly, knowing full well Jim had told Spock to watch over her. "Maybe having you watch my back will help in the long run."

"I happen to agree, Commander," McCoy sounded from the doorway. "You seem to attract trouble like honey attracts bees."

"I'm not helpless and both of you know that," Audrey angrily said into their mikes, causing McCoy to flinch. "What we need to do is take samples and figure out where this ship came from."

"That is best accomplished by us not going in different directions," Spock replied calmly, getting a glare in return.

"Fine. The security camera I hacked was focused on Deck 18, two decks below us. Who knows what lies above or below that," the red head commented, stalking toward the turbolifts.

"Commander?" The question intoned in Spock's question makes her turn around. "The lifts are inoperable. The ladder to the lower deck is 4.5 degrees north of our current position."

It was no wonder why the doctor and Spock got into logical arguments, the Vulcan could be downright irritating. "Right," she muttered, following the two men in the direction Spock had pointed out before.

Distracted by her irritation she almost didn't feel the cannibalistic rage directed at her back, and if it weren't for Spock's acute hearing, she would be breathing in the virus at this very second. For the second time in the past week, she owed her life to the Vulcan.

Ducking out of the way, Audrey rolled onto her side to see Spock disarm the Cardissian, whose eyes were raging with hunger and animalistic tendencies. She watched as Spock nerve pinched the poor soul and let him collapse beside her.

She couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief when Spock held out a gloved hand to help her up. "I thank thee," Audrey whispered, seeing McCoy lean over the bulkhead and stare curiously of them. Realizing what had just occurred, he rushed over, his tri corder going over her form for the millionth time in a week.

"Run your thing over that being, Doctor," Audrey snapped, searching wildly for hers. Her own tri corder had slid in the opposite direction of they were going, and Audrey felt that rage again. "Uh, gentlemen, we have company again!"

Both helmet swiveled toward hers, both set of eyes noticing the few crew members left, growling in their direction. Yes, this was definitely her mother's virus; the cannibalistic rage was just one of the symptoms of it. This was only the second stage and it scared her to the core.

"Guys we need to move now," she whispered, moving as much as she could against the bulkhead. "We cannot stop them until they reach the third stage."

"Third stage?" McCoy exclaimed softly.

"Don't ask, just move," she barked, pushing him around the corner, ladder in view. "Spock, what kind of reading do you have?"

"Multiple life forms below and above us. Some of their presences are dimming, as you might say." Spock replied, when Audrey sensed more rage, that same emotion threatening to overtake her senses.

She hadn't healed completely yet, nor had the mediation needed to take on such emotions. Her mother was insane to come up with this crap, why did she think that taking the fight out of people could help anyone?

Her vision started blurring, her head pounding as the rage grew closer and closer then…

"McCoy to Enterprise, I need an emergency beam out now!" McCoy shouted into his communicator, his arm holding Audrey up while Spock looked at the Cardissians warily.

"No, I can do this. I can block them out," Audrey said, trying to center herself, only to fail. "We have to finish this mission. We can't let any more people die."

"Then I will endeavor to do so, Commander," Spock replied, taking his phaser and stunning those running toward them. "I will ascertain what is causing this."

Audrey opened her eyes long enough to look directly at Spock, her thoughts transferring to his as his floated in her mind. "You believe you can outrun these infected survivors?" she asked, taking out the closest Cardissian to them.

"I have more strength and speed than you do, Commander. I can reach the bodies we need for the samples you require."

"Are you out of your Vulcan mind, Spock?" McCoy shouted beside her. "You're outnumbered five to one!"

"Yet I can outmaneuver them Doctor. They are reaching their death and only want to die honorably." Spock replied, flanking the two.

"You call this death honorable?" Audrey reached out to McCoy, patting him on his chest.

"In more ways than one," she said, closing her eyes as dizziness swept over her. "Pearce to transporter room?"

"Go fo' transporter room," A familiar Scottish voice replied.

"Scotty, I need to lock onto Spock's signal once we are aboard the Enterprise. If any anomalies occur you are to beam him out immediately do you understand?"

"Aye ma'am, are you ready for a beam out?" Scotty acknowledged, making Audrey lay her eyes on Spock.

"You get to those decks where there are no life signs, you hear? Any sign of something off you request that beam out okay?" Audrey said, tightening her grip on McCoy. "I don't need the first officer of Starfleet's flagship playing hero on my conscience."

"I understand, Commander. There would be no logic in getting myself killed if I cannot give you the samples we came for." Audrey laughed, causing Spock to raise an eyebrow.

"I always knew Vulcans had a dry sense of humor," she said, breathing hard when emotions again got the best of her. "Enterprise, two to beam out."

"Aye Commander. Transport in three, two, one…" The familiar sounds of the transporter beam whirring around her helped soothe her aching head and soon she saw the inside of the decontamination chamber.

The red head still felt the aftereffects of telepathic overload she just experienced, wavering a bit on her feet just as she heard the doctor yelling instructions at the nurse who had taken care of her before.

She heard the whirring of the decompressing air in the chamber, when her vision started blurring again.

"Doctor…" she slurred, when she noticed the doors opened and Nurse Chapel rushed in holding a hypospray.

The last thing she remembered before blacking out was McCoy taking off her helmet and pushing that hypospray into her neck and then everything turned black.

~~~~~~~~~~...~~~~~~~~~~

Jim remained on the edge of the seat from the moment his three officers and friends departed from the bridge. His blue eyes, at that very moment, were locked on the view screen in front of him watching as Audrey, Bones and Spock beamed aboard the ghost ship.

Sometimes in the back of his wayward mind, he had always thought he would be the one participating in these insane plans. This time however, those three were the ones fit to do so.

He couldn't help but think that he had some kind of influence over his first officer and the woman accompanying them seemed to think so too.

"Lieutenant Uhura, activate audio now." Kirk said, handing gripping the chair.

"Aye, Captain," she replied, three familiar voices filtering into the bridge, two of them bickering.

"Some things never change, no matter what the environment," the captain muttered to himself when he remembered something. "Bridge to Scotty."

"Scotty 'ere, sir. What can I help you with?" the Scottish man answered.

"Do you have a lock on all three of them in case they need an emergency beam out?"

"Do you doubt my abilities, Captain? Of course I do, always have to be prepared down here!" Jim laughed, shaking his head. Only Scotty could get away with chastising him.

"I had to check, Scotty. Bridge out."

"Captain, I have detecting more lifeforms heading toward the Doctor and Commanders," Lieutenant Darius said from Spock's console. "Their readings are fluctuating, between strong and weak!"

"Damn!" Jim muttered, turning his chair to the science station. "What do you suspect is causing those fluctuations, Lieutenant?"

"It's difficult to say without proper readings, sir. My assumption is that the virus has different stages."

"Keep an eye on those readings, and let me know if anything changes."

"Aye Captain," Darius replied, Jim turning around to face the viewscreen , only to see Cardissians approach the position of his officers. Noticing that their backs were turned to the raging beings, Jim started fidgeting, muttering under his breath.

Uhura tried to keep the squawk of surprise from him when they saw Spock disarm the first Cardissian attack Audrey, who had seemed distracted, which was unlike her.

"Captain, three more Cardissians are approaching the Commander's positions, and their readings just got stronger!"

"Understood. Bridge to Scotty, be prepared for a possible emergency beam out," Jim countered calmly, even though his heart was beating faster than it normally would.

"Aye sir. Transporter is ready," Scotty replied, only to be interrupted by Audrey's voice from the other ship.

"Run your thing over that being, Doctor," Audrey snapped, the bridge suddenly abuzz with activity, analyzing the readings that were coming in. "Uh, gentlemen, we have company again!"

"Uhura, can you hear anything from that ship? Were there any transmissions relayed before it was infected?" Kirk asked, eyes searching the video for any clue of what was going on.

"Negative, Captain," she replied, her voice tight with concern. "No transmissions at all."

"Well that's weird," he said to himself when Friedman interrupted him.

"Captain, I just got the Cardissians' last known coordinates!" he yelled over the commotion around him. "They came from inside Klingon space!"

Jim waved his hands in the air with frustration. "Of course! If you wanted to hide a world renowned geneticist you would do so in Klingon space because you know we can't get you there!" he said angrily when Bone's voice sounded over his.

"McCoy to Enterprise, I need an emergency beam out now!" Jim stared at the screen, noticing Audrey drooped over McCoy's shoulder, Spock stunning the raging Cardissians charging them. Something was definitely wrong when he heard Audrey reply she could block them out.

What exactly was she feeling that made McCoy want to beam out before they even got the samples?

"We have to finish this mission. We can't let any more people die," Audrey said, words starting to slur. It took one tough Starfleet Officer to say such words, and his admiration for the Commander increased tenfold.

Then Uhura gasped audibly and Kirk turned around to see her beautiful face ashen. "What happened, Lieutenant?"

"He closed himself off, Captain," she replied an edge to her voice. "This only means he's going to do something only you would."

Jim stood stumped for a moment, wondering how Spock could handle the raging humanoids on that ship when he heard McCoy exclaim that Spock was out of his Vulcan mind.

"Yet I can outmaneuver them Doctor. They are reaching their death and only want to die honorably." He heard Spock say making the Captain shake his head. Spock really was out of his Vulcan mind thinking he could take on a ship full of raging Cardissian warriors. They were deadly without the virus as it was.

"Jim, I blame you solely for this," Nyota said, her eyes trained on the three officers running.

"Not my fault he wants to play hero. He knows what he has to do and he will come back, just for you." Jim answered back, hearing Audrey ask for an emergency beam out. He had the utmost faith in his Number One, when Scotty replied he was ready.

"You get to those decks where there are no life signs you hear? Any sign of something off you request that beam out ok? I don't need the first officer of Starfleet's flagship playing hero on my conscience." Commander Pearce said, her voice sounding throughout the bridge quieting it.

"I understand, Commander. There would be no logic in getting myself killed if I cannot give you the samples we came for." Spock's replied monotone causing Audrey to laugh, even if it was hoarse. Jim, in his time working with Spock, knew that the man had a very dry sense of humor, even others didn't understand it.

"I always knew Vulcans had a dry sense of humor." The voice replied, breathing hard. "Enterprise, two to beam out."

Jim didn't realize he was holding his breath until Scotty had announced that Bones and Audrey had made it back safely into the decontamination chamber. He thanked Scotty and settled back in to make sure Spock got back safely too.

~~~~~~~~~...~~~~~~~~

It had been fifteen minutes since Bones and Audrey returned safely and Spock was on the run from cannibalistic Cardissians – which was how the wonderful doctor described them. He had Ensign Friedman follow the feed on the ship so they could keep track of where Spock was when Jim finally had it.

"Lieutenant Uhura, please hail Commander Spock and open a channel so we can converse with him," Jim said through gritted teeth. Without back up his first officer was outnumbered, even though as the minutes wore on more Cardissians died.

No what bothered him was the prolonged exposure Spock was having to the environment, even in a hazmat suit.

He was ready to suit up himself when Spock answered him back. "It is illogical to come after me, Captain, when I have obtained the samples needed and am ready to be beamed back to the Enterprise."

Spock was too good at reading him, even on opposing ships. "Acknowledged Commander. Scotty, beam Spock out of there pronto."

"Aye, Captain, ready to transport in three two one…" Scotty said, when Jim closed off the connection and nodded to Uhura. "Lieutenant, you're with me. Sulu, you have the conn."

"Aye Captain," his pilot replied, when Nyota and he entered the turbolift. Nyota stood against the wall, arms crossed, and her eyes angry.

"Has he reestablished the bond yet?" he asked, the lift doors opening to the deck sick bay was on.

"No, and he knows me too well to attempt to do so at this time," she replied, walking in step with him.

"Smart man," Jim muttered, entering the organized chaos that was Bone's sick bay. His eyes landed on the small form on a biobed, Bones hovering over it analyzing the readings.

"Spock is finishing in the decontamination chamber if you wish to speak with him," the CMO said, without turning around. Nyota nodded and walked toward the doors that would lead to Spock.

"What happened, Bones?" Jim asked, stepping closer to Audrey whose eyes were closed.

"Overload of strong emotions. Being around those kinds of emotions for her were overwhelming."

Jim fought the urge to brush his hand across her forehead and instead turned to Bones. "She can get overwhelmed by emotions?" he asked, his best friend sighing.

"When empaths and telepaths haven't mediated or centered themselves, some of the strong emotions people can emanate can overload their senses," Jim nodded encouraging Bones to continue. "Since the Commander here hadn't been around many humans or humanoids for a while, she was susceptible to the overload. She couldn't block out the rage and thus blackouts occur. I was lucky enough not to be affected by it, probably because the hobgoblin helped out."

"You deduction is correct Doctor," Spock sounded behind them, a much calmer Nyota beside him. "When her thoughts entered mine, I knew she had lost control. Taking control was the only logical position I had."

Bones was shaking his head, but held back a grin. "I take it you got the samples we needed, Spock?"

A groan interrupted what was to be another round of bickering, all four of them training their eyes on the now groggy Commander. "Do all of you have to stand there staring at me?" she said, her arm slinging over her eyes.

"Lights ten percents," Bones commanded.

"I take it Spock returned?" Audrey asked.

"I have just returned, Commander, and as I said before, I have accomplished the mission with positive results."

"So in human talk, you have the samples and are itching to take them to the science lab to analyze them?" Audrey teased, getting two raised eyebrows in return.

"I will continue to endeavor to discover what caused that rage, Commander," Spock replied.

"Then on you go, Commander, you are our only shot at figuring this out at this moment since I will probably be confined here for at least four hours."

Spock looked at Jim, who just nodded his dismissal. The Vulcan turned and exited the room, obviously on a mission that would take most of his concentration. Jim turned back to the groaning Audrey as Bones pressed another hypospray to her neck.

"That was to help with the inevitable migraine with an emotional overload."

"Thanks, Doctor, you've done your research," Audrey replied, sighing in relief. He could tell she was slipping back into a deep sleep, so he had to ask his question before she did.

"Commander, I need to know what we should do with the Cardissian ships," he asked causing the arm to lower and brown eyes to meet his.

She sighed heavily, eyes blinking away the pain. "What we need to do is blow those ships up."

"What? You can't be serious, those are actual beings on that ship!" Nyota exclaimed, making Audrey glance sharply at her.

"What you do not know, Lieutenant, is that those beings are dead, or will be dead within the next hour. Tearing them to pieces would be merciful compared to what they are going through right now." The hard edge to her tone almost caused Jim to take a step back.

He may disagree with senseless murder, but the Commander was correct. The latest reading showed only five life forms still breathing and their readings were diminishing every minute. Before Nyota could respond, Bones stepped in.

"You also have to realize that if we don't, we risk exposing not only us, but the rest of the system to that virus," the glare in Bone's eyes evident when Nyota nodded. "I understand why you reacted like that, I did too until I saw it first-hand."

"Lieutenant Uhura?" Jim asked formally, watching the different expressions wash over her face until it settled on neutral.

"I am going back to the bridge, Captain, and will alert the base about our course of action," she said, turning as Spock did.

"Thank you, Lieutenant, I will be up shortly." Uhura nodded walking out the doors. "Commander, are you certain this is the only option we have?"

"I am certain. We have to be sure this virus cannot spread and destroying it with heat and exposing it to the vacuum of space may be the only way to kill it."

"May?"

She sighed, eyes drooping in exhaustion. "I cannot know for sure until I see the results, but if I am correct space will stop it from spreading. The Klingons cannot chance having it spread into their territory."

"Then we will do what we discussed as soon as I return to the bridge." Audrey nodded, head lolling to the side.

"Good. When I awake later, can you debrief me on how that goes over with Pike?" she said softly, eyes closing.

Jim leaned in closer and patted her arm. "You know I will do so. Now rest."

Her eyes closed fully, her vital signs stabilizing as she did so. "You know, you have to resist her until this is all over, Jim," Bone said, pulling up two chairs. Jim looked at them warily, not knowing if he should stay a few more minutes. "Just sit Jim and listen to what I have to say."

He glared at his best friend, then turned his eyes to the slumbering red head that his thoughts centered around. "What are you going to lecture me on this time, Bones?"

Bones didn't hesitate. "I know she's special, Jim and I know you're attracted to her." Jim's head shot up. "Hear me out, as of right now there is a threat out there that could potentially emotionally compromise you and the Admiralty is looking for any reason for you to mess up."

Jim sighed, running a hand through his hair. He knew his friend was right and Bones was talking to him as a friend to a friend, not as a CMO to his Captain. "Go on, Bones, you know I welcome your honesty."

"You cannot let this compromise you more. She has as much as stake as you do, and she is an empath to boot."

Now Bones was talking as his CMO and it was turning to a conversation Spock was probably going to have with him later. The doctor continued on. "You can listen to her, and follow her all you want but you and you are alone are captain of this ship. You need to remember that."

Jim met the hazel eyes of his best friend. "Is that all?"

"One more thing: don't get hurt." With that Bones stood up and went to his office, leaving Jim alone with his thoughts, which right now were more than he could possibly handle.


	8. Bonding Time

Now its begins to get interesting...

**_Chp. 8 - Bonding Time_**

Audrey woke up a few hours later, feeling refreshed. She stretched her arms, shaking off the last of the grogginess that had held her back.

"Good, you're awake," she heard the doctor say, bringing her arms down and catching sight of the tri corder that never left his hand. "How do you feel?"

"Much better," she replied. "Now that I am feeling so much better, when can I get out of here and start looking at those samples?"

McCoy laughed. "Anxious are we?"

She glared at him. "Extremely. The longer we wait, the more of a chance Kodos has at releasing more of that virus."

"Hold your horses, okay? I just need to do a few neural scans and then you'll be out of here. I promise."

She crossed her arms, huffing. "Fine."

"Maybe you're not feeling as great because you're not arguing with me." He said, running his tri corder over her head.

"Maybe I just know that arguing with you is useless."

"I think I just had a heart attack. Can you teach Jim to not argue with me when he's hurt?"

Audrey shook her head. "Unlike him, I do have some common sense. Not a lot, but some."

Bones grunted. "Insulting yourself. Now that is a new one."

Audrey grinned, rolling her eyes. "It's fun. You should try it sometime."

The doctor nodded approvingly and set down his tri corder. He then looked straight at her and sighed. Audrey swung her legs over the side of the biobed and stopped hearing the resigned sigh.

"What?" she asked.

"Why are you here?" he asked, taking a chair and sitting right in front of her. She furrowed her brow, puzzled.

"What do you mean?"

"Why did you choose to send your signal to the Enterprise?" he asked, his face concerned.

Audrey was taken aback at the doctor's abrasiveness. She thought that he trusted her, that she had no ulterior motive other than finding her mother. She wasn't after Jim's position, she wasn't a spy and she certainly wasn't looking for trouble. Trouble just found her.

"Because you are the best of the best. You are the flagship, the one with the most advanced technology, science and weapon wise. You saw what I was up against. I couldn't do it by myself anymore. I needed help."

McCoy didn't look any more sure than he was before. She sighed, swinging her legs back and forth anxiously. "What do you want me to say, Doctor?"

He shook his head, his hazel eyes pained. "He's my best friend, Commander. Someone who accepts me for who I am and doesn't look back."

Audrey stopped swinging her legs and looked straight at him. "And?"

"He likes you. More than anyone else I have seen come into his line of sight." The CMO sighed again. "I just don't want anyone to jeopardize this for him. He had worked his entire life to come out of his father's shadow and now he has to relive a horrible part of his past. This could end him if it doesn't go right."

It finally clicked for Audrey. This mission, the mission she brought to them, could possibly emotionally compromise the youngest captain in Starfleet history. "Oh," she said, rubbing her temples.

"Yes, Oh. Jim is capable of many things but to be attracted to someone like you, someone that could possibly leave, it could destroy him."

Audrey's eyes widened. She was attracted to the golden boy of Federation but not because he was famous but because he was… oh man. She didn't even know him.

Her brown eyes looked at the doctor. "I will try not to hurt him, okay? Right now, all I can think about is getting a cure for this virus."

McCoy nodded, getting up from this chair. "Don't forget that Jim has been through hell in his life. Go easy on him. He is still in command of this ship and if he questions anything, you listen."

Audrey put her hands up in surrender. "I can't promise anything, but I will try."

Another eyebrow was raised at her. "Do or do not, there is no try."

McCoy smiled briefly and left the room, leaving Audrey to stew for a bit. Everything he had said was true, but difficult to follow. She wasn't one to take advice, especially from someone she had just met but she knew that the doctor was right.

Everything about this mission could turn extremely ugly in a minute if they made one misstep and instead of her bearing the brunt of it, Jim would. She couldn't let that happen. This had been her mission and if anything went wrong, everything would fall on her.

~~~~~~~...~~~~~

Audrey dressed herself with the clean clothes left for her, and wandered out of the private room she had been given. She noticed that it must be the Gamma shift, because the Medbay was deserted, save for the lone light coming from the doctor's office.

She knocked on the door quietly, and stood there for a moment not hearing a sound. She typed in the code Kirk gave her and the door slid open to reveal a passed out McCoy, his head in his arms on his desk. Around him were various datapads, and some were even strewn on the floor.

Shaking her head, Audrey stepped in and gathered the stray PADDs and organized them on a chair next to the doctor's desk. Taking note of the information on the PADDs, she gently took the blanket draped over the couch and placed it over the shoulders of the slumbering doctor. Placing a hand on his head, she sent feelings of comfort and content to him and stepped out in the quiet sickbay.

She sighed, looking for the nearest computer to help her around the ship. It had been awhile since she had seen the layout of the Enterprise and needed some help getting around. She located the computer on the far wall and walked over to it, running her hand against the bulkhead lightly. Even if was just the sickbay, she was on the ship of her dreams. Audrey just had to make sure she wasn't dreaming.

"The science labs are deck eleven, right next to the greenhouse." A voice said behind her, making her jump. She turned around to see the chief communications officer, standing there leaning against the doorframe. Lieutenant Uhura was slightly taller than Audrey, her long legs encased in a pair of sweat and she was swaddled in what looked like a Vulcan sweater.

Big brown eyes watched her carefully, as Audrey just stood there. "What are you doing here so late?" Audrey finally asked.

"I was coming to check on the Doctor. He and Spock have been working tirelessly on the research but have gotten nowhere," Nyota replied, nodding to the office behind her. "Since Spock isn't in our quarters, I can't sleep; so I came to check on Leo to make sure he actually sleeps."

"He's passed out on his desk. I lulled him deeper in sleep, because I know he needs it." Audrey replied, slipping by the taller woman into the corridor, which was also empty. "He might have a crick in his neck when he wakes up, but at least he'll be well rested."

The auburn haired Commander heard the soft footsteps of the Lieutenant following her, a question burning at the front of her mind. "Ask away, Lieutenant," she said, stopping and turning around.

Nyota looked surprised at first, and then realization dawned on her face. "Sorry, I keep forgetting you're an empath. I had a hard enough time with Spock, but now…"

"It's okay. At times like this, after an emotional overload, I can only sense the most basic thoughts and emotions." She replied. "I don't use it against people. You should be fine because Spock has probably taught you the basics of shielding, right?"

Nyota shifted, her shoulders slumping. "Look, I know I'm new around here, but even I could tell you and Spock are together. That's why I came to you first about meditating with Spock. I would never intrude on your bond."

"Sorry, I just…" Audrey held up her hand, a smile gracing her face.

"Look, Lieutenant, I am trying not to impose on anything. I am here to complete this mission and get my mother and the Captain's brother back," she said, meeting the other woman's eyes. "That and stop this virus from spreading. Great mission I have isn't it?"

Nyota laughed, her laugh bringing music to anyone who heard it. "Just so you know, your research is incredible. Not only did you research the genetics of it, but the races themselves. How many languages are you fluent in?"

Audrey laughed, the resident tension subsiding. "Too many. I moved from planet to planet when I was younger, and picked up on the languages. I think I'm upwards of almost fifty right now."

Audrey smiled widely, waving Nyota on as they walked toward the turbolift. "You know, you have an amazing ability you know that? Pike hasn't stopped talking about your fascination with languages. I like them, but not that much."

Nyota smiled sweetly. "Thank you. I knew about you and your accomplishments while I was at the Academy. I am just surprised Jim never propositioned you."

The turbolift arrived, and the doors slid open. The two women stepped him. "Deck Eleven." Nyota said, turning to Audrey. "Spock told me your mother worked with Vulcan scientists before you moved to Earth."

The Commander nodded, her memories drifting to the one of most tumultuous times in her life. "I had met Spock's father and mother then, while my mother was presenting her research at the Vulcan Science Academy. Apparently, they were so impressed at her emotional control; they let her stay an extra few months."

"So you knew Spock before he entered Starfleet?" Nyota asked, her tone curious. Audrey looked at her sharply, the pain evident in her eyes.

"I did," was all Audrey said when the lift stopped at the deck eleven.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to…"

Audrey turned around, wiping the tears away furiously. "No, it's okay. Really. It's just I met him when I got word my father died."

Audrey sighed, leaning again the wall. "We all have dark times in our lives right? It just makes us stronger and who we are today."

Nyota reached out to squeeze the crying woman's shoulder. "Exactly. If it weren't for those times, our destiny would be different. It's something I have learned this past year."

Audrey squeezed her hand back gratefully. "Just promise me one thing?"

The other woman looked at her questioningly. "Do not let the guys know I have girly emotions. I don't need my tough girl reputation tarnished in any way."

Nyota laughed again, as the two walked toward the science labs. Everyone seemed to like her, and was genuinely interested in helping her in this mission. She had never been so grateful for Pike at this moment, because he was the one who insisted she contact the Enterprise to help her.

They approached the doors leading to the most advance science labs on any starship, each lost in their own thoughts. Audrey knew that in the past five minutes she had gained a friend and it warmed her heart to know that.

Spock was seated in front of a panel of intricate working, something most people wouldn't get but Audrey did. It had taken the blood samples and tested them thoroughly, trying to trace the DNA to a specific race. It had been something Audrey had dreamed of while she was teaching at the Academy, and now it was a reality.

She could not wait to work with it, and was slightly jealous that Spock got to it first. Spock turned around and his eyes looked at Nyota with absolute adoration. It make Audrey smile inwardly, knowing full well how difficult Vulcan could be emotionally. Nyota obviously understood it, and took it in stride.

"It is admirable what your mother has done, Commander." Spock said after looking away from the Lieutenant. "It has taken me the past two days to determine what race this was taken from."

Audrey looked at him sharply, eyes narrowing. "A recent development?"

"Very much so." Spock handed her a PADD, when the door swished open again, this time allowing entry to the now awake doctor and the never tired Captain.

"I hope this is important, Spock. I was actually enjoying the sleep I was getting," McCoy grumbled, getting an elbow in his side from Kirk.

Audrey scanned the info, her eyes widening as she kept reading. Her mother was definitely one of a kind, and she somehow managed to replicate this. Oh boy, this was not good.

"So what was the discovery Spock?" Kirk asked, his arms crossed.

"He found out what my mother made," Audrey said tightly. Her emotions were at an all-time high, and her anger was started to seep through. Spock must have noticed and Audrey began to center herself again.

"So, what exactly are we dealing with and how do we stop it?" McCoy asked.

Audrey sighed, closing her eyes. They had to make one stop before going after Kodos and that stop was a day away. "My mother made a virus that took the fight out of people. She wanted no violence, but it backfired on her. Instead of taking the urge to fight away, it just heightened it. It makes people go crazy, causes the nerves in the brain to fire more rapidly."

McCoy's scowl deepened. "Go on."

"Along with that, she integrated an extinct virus from the 20th century, a virus called small pox."

"Small pox!"

"Yes, between these two, the animalistic rage we saw was not the worst. Cardissians at best are aggressive, but if this virus made it say to Vulcans or Humans, the entire race could be wiped out."

The rest of them remained quiet for a moment when Nyota spoke up. "Wait a minute, who's DNA was this virus based on?"

Audrey looked straight at Spock, whose eyes were simmering with anger then back at everyone. "Vulcan. My mother used Vulcan blood." Audrey said, looking up at the ceiling for help. "We need to stop at New Vulcan guys. I need full Vulcan genetics to be able to make the antidote."

Kirk took a deep breath and nodded. "I'll let the bridge know to set in a course to New Vulcan. Spock I will recommend we contact your father and see how he can help us." He turned to Audrey and McCoy, who had identical scowls on their faces. "You two need to sit down and work out what we need to stop this."

They nodded and Audrey looked at the Captain one more time. "I just hope we have enough time. Those Cardissians are proof Kodos is serious and New Vulcan may be our only hope." Audrey said, meeting the troubled blue eyes.

Kirk had a look on his face like he had a revelation. "However, I think I know someone that may be of more help than the remaining Vulcan scientists. Someone that may have experience with this."

"Oh no, Jim you can't…" McCoy sputtered, looking at Spock.

"He may be correct in his assumptions, Doctor. He may have the answers we are looking for," Spock replied, making Audrey look back and forth.

"Guys, I hate to interrupt another bickering session but who in the galaxy are we talking about?" she asked, arms crossed, her face stern.

Jim broke out in a huge smile. "An old friend."


	9. Nightmares Resurface

_The Nightmares Resurface _

"Oh come on, you stupid piece of crap!" Audrey exclaimed, slamming her fingers at the controls in front of her. Even though New Vulcan had been a day away, the Enterprise couldn't get clearance from the Vulcan High Council for a specific day to pull into orbit. So far, they were waiting in the orbit in the neighboring system awaiting a response.

In the meantime, McCoy, Spock and Audrey had been working fervently to ascertain the origins of the virus and in the process create a cure. Hence why Audrey was annoyed and frustrated, and why the other two men in the room were looking at her strangely.

"You do know that hitting the computer will not make it work faster," Kirk said, flying into the room, his blue eyes twinkling. "Bones over there has firsthand knowledge of that, don't you?"

Audrey rolled her eyes, turning away from the thing that wouldn't cooperate with her. "Oh, I know. I think he and I are competing on who will break something first," she replied, glaring at Spock. Kirk nodding knowingly.

"You guys have had a total of what? Three hours of sleep for the last three days?" McCoy and Audrey looked at each other and shrugged. "Well I think you would get a clearer head if you slept for a few hours."

Spock continued to ignore him and the other two just sat there. "Spock you need rest too. Nyota hasn't gotten any sleep either, I might add."

The red headed Commander rubbed her temples gingerly, sensing a migraine. She did have to admit sleep sounded really good right about now and she did need a clear head. Sometimes her best work came after a REM cycle.

She looked the Captain straight in the eye. "How much sleep have you gotten?" she asked, grabbing a stylus from her station and lobbing at the doctor's head. It hit him square in the back of his head, getting his attention.

The blonde had the audacity to look smug. "The same as you guys."

McCoy's head spun around faster than you could say peaches, and glared straight at Jim. "Alright, we are getting sedatives and sleeping for at least six hours. If the Council hasn't gotten back to us now, then it should be at the least another day til they give us clearance."

"That doctor is correct, Commander," Spock said, standing up. "It is logical to believe that after our rest cycles our minds will be at optimal functionality."

"Do you always have to use big words?" the Doctor grumbled, rubbing the back of his neck.

"As a Vulcan, our culture dictates…"

Audrey raised a hand to stop the lecture. "As much as I have enjoyed your bickering over the past three days, my brain cannot take anymore. So quiet, both of you."

Kirk laughed. "She's got both of you there."

McCoy glared and then stood up, stretching. "That she does. Come you two, if you two are any alike you both won't be able to sleep more than three hours without a sedative of some kind."

Spock slid out the door with such feline grace the other three barely noticed. They looked at each other wearily and trudged out the door, locking this part of the science lab off to everyone but themselves.

Sometime in the next ten minutes, Audrey found herself sprawled on Jim's couch, not willing to move any further without some kind of help. She groaned at the sight of the hypo in McCoy's hand, and flinched away.

She must have been extremely tired though and didn't dodge the hand coming at her. The hiss of hypo alerted her that the drug will be taking effect soon and moved to get up. "A little help, please," she groaned, trying to stand up and did so unsuccessfully. McCoy grabbed her arm to balance her and led her to Jim's bed.

She glared at him, pulling the command shirt over her head and got comfortable in her casual blacks. She looked down and saw a passed out Kirk to one side. "This is totally not my bed," she grumbled.

"I can't keep an ear out if you're in his guest quarters. So for right now, appease me and sleep here," he replied, reaching down and pulling the covers out from under his best friend. Audrey looked between the doctor and the bed and sighed.

"Fine," she said, landing hard on the bed not even disturbing it's other occupant. "But if he tries to cuddle, I will kick him somewhere he doesn't want it."

The other brunette laughed, and tucked the covers under Jim's chin. Audrey settled in, taking one portion of the covers and curled up in a ball, her back to the captain. Closing her eyes, she let the darkness take her.

-

_Audrey was trapped in a cold damp place and she couldn't place her finger on where she was. She turned around, taking in the dark surrounding, trying to attune her senses._

She saw movement out of the corner of her eye and saw a twelve year old ordering younger children around. She heard gunfire near and saw the frightened faces, their eyes with horror.

The kid was passing around a loaf of bread, not taking any himself, and hearing the sounds, pushed the younger ones down a separate tunnel.

"Go! Or else they'll get you too!" the boy whispered, his bony hand waving the others by.

Wait this wasn't her dream. This was…

Then a blinding light appeared and she collapsed onto the ground, howling in pain. She then heard voices saying, "Bring him to Kodos…" 

Audrey woke with a start, sweating glistening on her forehead. Next to her, Jim was thrashing, the covers tangled around his body. He started moaning, and the images came back to haunt her.

Had he really been that skinny? That starved because of that monster? Closing her eyes, she reached out to the man next to her. Images of bodies filled her vision, as she relived Tarsus with Kirk. She saw the whip hit him; saw them execute the colonists so the perfect ones could survive. It was like Earth's holocaust all over again.

Opening her eyes, she saw Bones run in, his hair wild, eyes frantic. He knelt near Kirk, trying to reach the flailing hand that was about to hit her. She glanced at the clock and realized they had only slept two hours.

"Damn," McCoy exclaimed, looking around for the med kit he had left in the room.

Audrey finally woke enough to grab Jim and bring him closer to her, opening herself to him. Using her emotions, she weaved happier ones into him, trying to soothe him. She could sense the franticness of McCoy, the quiet content of Nyota and the never ceasing mind of Nyota's Vulcan. In her arms, the Captain was reliving one of the darkest times in his life.

Closing her eyes again, she saw the despair and helplessness Kirk felt in his dream, and started to imagine the colors of emotions. She saw black, but then red and green started to appear, filtering in from McCoy, who now seemed more concerned than frantic.

Using her empathic ability, she grabbed that concern and started to tangle it in Jim's dream. Audrey had to get through to him that this was just a dream and he wasn't alone. His best friend finally realized what the Commander was trying to do, and calmed down creating a blue hue in her mind.

Soon enough, being wrapped in concern, calm and love, Jim started to calm down and soon the dream faded away and she was suddenly looking at bright blue eyes.

"Wow," McCoy said, quietly, hypo poised and ready. Jim's hand had grasped hers out of need and looked away. "What did you do?"

Audrey looked at the man cradled in her arms, and sighed. "It was something my mother used to calm me whenever I had nightmares or got pulled into one of my father's." she said, watching Jim untangle himself and situate himself on his side of the bed.

"Which was?" he asked, handing the blond the cup of water on his desk.

"By pulling happier emotions from around her. Emotions have different colors, so I looked for the ones that could help comfort him." Audrey said, her brown eyes looking at the curled up Captain, who refused to look at her. "While he was dreaming, I was there with him. I saw what he saw."

Jim stiffened at her words. "I haven't experienced that kind of transfer in years."

McCoy looked at his friend then back at her. "So what you're telling me is you wrapped him in emotions that would wake him from his dream?"

"Or at least soothe the dream away. You know how you usually try to control your dreams when they don't go your way?" The Doctor nodded. "Well I just helped a little bit."

"I had perfect control, Commander." Jim said, sitting up and glaring at him. She glared right back.

"Not when you were projecting as much as you were. In my REM cycle, I was dreaming what you were. In that instance, your dreams were spilling out. I had to help you or I would have ended up with overloaded emotions."

The Captain's friend looked at him soothingly. "I gave you the wrong sedative, Jim. I'm sorry," he said, glancing over at Audrey, telling her what he meant. "This one should allow you to sleep a little more without any dreams."

Jim looked exhausted and only nodded. "That's what I thought," the Doctor replied, giving Jim the sedative and watched his eyes close again. He then looked at Audrey apologetically. "Please do not mention this again. He hates people to see this side of him."

Audrey nodded. "I understand. And yes I will remain here and make sure he sleeps." He shot up an eyebrow. "I will sleep too. As long as his nightmares subside, I should be able to sleep properly. But if it comes down to it, I will do that again."

McCoy looked at his best friend and nodded. "That's all I ask. Go back to sleep. He should be fine for the rest of the cycle."

He got up and went back to his quarters, leaving alone with the man sharing the bed with her. Apparently Jim had been avoiding sleep for the very reason of not dreaming. Having Kodos reappear made his usual emotions unstable.

She sighed and lay down again, this time facing the prone body before her. This man was getting to her in a way no one had before.

James T. Kirk was more than a hero. He was a man who lived for his crew, took care of them and put himself last. He was a person who had been through a difficult life and was trying to make up for past wrongs.

If there was one thing, Audrey Pearce had learned was the James T. Kirk was indeed a human and he was starting to make her fall for him more.

_

Jim awoke to his comm unit beeping loudly at him and threw a pillow at it to make it shut up. He hadn't slept in days and all he wanted to do was sleep some more. He turned over, only to see a slumbering Audrey Pearce next to him.

Almost jumping away, he remained still and watched her sleep. He glanced at the time and realized they had slept eight hours straight, minus the slight interruption two hours ago. Jim couldn't help but be embarrassed that the woman next him had witnessed him at his most vulnerable. The only person who had ever seen like that was Bones and he had wanted to keep it that way.

Watching the rise and fall of her chest, he couldn't tear his eyes from the angelic face before him. Her red hair spilled across the pillow, one tendril straying and falling in her face. One hand was under the pillow and one was held at her chest, right above her heart.

Jim had never seen such a beautiful sight in his life. He honestly had no idea how she ended up in his bed, but he didn't really mind

"You're watching me sleep, aren't you?" a sleepy voice asked, making Jim jump a little. He grinned sheepishly, seeing her brown eyes open slightly to look at him.

"Not on purpose. I was trying to figure out how you got into my bed," he replied. She groaned, stretching her arms above the head, the covers revealing a bare patch of skin beneath them.

"I'll put it succinctly. It was McCoy's idea." She replied, bringing her arms down so she could rub the sleep out of her eyes.

The Captain nodded. "I figured. He wanted both of us close just in case anything happened."

"How long did we sleep?" she asked, bringing the covers up and cuddling underneath them.

"About eight hours." He replied, swinging his legs over the side, and stretched his back. He wanted to thank her for bringing him out of his nightmare but didn't know how to broach the subject. He had never experienced such a thing as she did with him earlier.

"I won't tell anyone if that's what you are wondering," her muffled voice said. Jim turned his head to see her head buried in his pillow, one eye open looking at him. "Sorry, you were projecting again."

"Are you usually this difficult to get out of bed?" he asked instead. He will talk to her later on about what she had seen. The Commander deserved to know the horrors that Kodos committed on Tarsus.

"Once I'm in bed, I usually never want to get out unless I have some kind of motivation," she said, burrowing deeper into the covers and pillows.

Jim couldn't resist the bait. "I thought you would be harder to get into bed. Not out of."

A pillow hit him in the back of his head and he laughed. Turning around, he noticed that her curls were astray and her face was flushed. Audrey glared at him, as she looked around for her shirt she had discarded before she went to bed.

"Since you think you are a smart ass, how about getting us some coffee so we can wake up and get back to work?" she demanded. Jim made note that she was extremely cranky when she woke up. Hopefully she was like Bones and became less cranky once she had her daily dose of caffeine.

"As you wish, your highness," the Captain retorted, standing up and heading toward the kitchen. "Feel free to take a shower while I make some."

He heard her grumbling and shook his head in amusement. It had been awhile since he had shared a bed with someone, let alone a beautiful woman, and found it to be comforting. Despite the brief nightmare, he hadn't slept so well in a long time.

Jim heard his best friend enter his quarters, and handed him a cup of newly made coffee. Bones sighed contently, inhaling the scent. Jim took his own and drank it, reveling in the silence between him and the doctor. This had been their usual morning routine when they had been roommates at the academy, and just realized how much he had missed it.

"You know I couldn't help but think how well Audrey fits in around here," his friend started, taking a sip of his coffee. "I have never seen someone slip into a role so easily."

Jim raised an eyebrow. "Except for you of course," he correctly hastily. "Anyway… care to talk about what happened earlier?"

He sighed. "Not really, but I have a feeling I won't be able to get away with it much longer."

He looked at the closed door to his bathroom. "I have never had someone bring me out of a nightmare that quickly before," he said, fascinated with his mug of coffee.

"You've never had an empath near you during one of your nightmares." Bones supplied. He was correct in that statement. The other people who ever had experienced him during nightmares had been Gaila and Bones. Having a half Betazoid around was going to take some getting used to. "I also have never seen someone so composed."

"It sounds like she had done this before," Jim said, meeting the hazel eyes of the doctor.

"That I have," Audrey said, coming out of the bathroom, drying her hair with a towel. She threw down the towel in exchange for the cup of coffee offered to her.

Jim looked at the discarded towel. "You better pick that up once you're done."

She ignored him for a moment before sighing in contentment. "Oh caffeine, how I love you so," she said, making Jim laugh. Brown eyes met his. "You want to know what I did, don't you?"

"Well, you know curiosity killed the cat," Bone said.

"And I am not a cat. That's all Spock," Jim retorted, watching Audrey's head bob back and forth between him and the CMO.

"Spock is not a cat, just a green blooded hobglobin."

"How many times have I told you not to call him that?" Jim sighed, shaking his head.

"Not enough - and you can't deny that he isn't. He did maroon you on Delta Vega after all." Bones said, finally taking notice of the highly amused female in the room. "I'll let him tell you that story himself."

"I will not," Jim retorted. Audrey just stood there sipping her coffee, so Jim gave all his attention to her. "What exactly did you do last night?"

She raised a curved eyebrow. "Absolutely nothing. We haven't had our first date yet."

Bones spit out his coffee, trying to suppress his laugh. "I like her," he said, in between laughs. Jim glared at his best friend.

She tried not to grin hugely at him and failed. "Oh you mean what I did to help you with your nightmare?" she asked, stepping over to pat the laughing doctor on the back. Jim nodded. "It's not complicated. Basically…"

"Bridge to Captain Kirk."

The captain couldn't help but groan. Sulu had the worst timing sometimes. He slapped the control panel. "Go for Kirk."

"The High Council had finally given us clearance to land a shuttle. They said we needed to be ready in three hours."

He looked at the other two occupants and they nodded. "Reply that a landing party will be departing within that timeframe. Have we set up appointment with the appropriate people?"

It was Uhura who answered this time. "We have. I will relay all the times to your PADD, sir."

"Thank you, Lieutenant. Please be prepared to depart with us. Kirk out." He let go of the button, glancing at the silent conversation going on between the Commander and the doctor. "You two ready for some fireworks?"

Audrey grinned. "Oh I couldn't be more ready. Who are we meeting again?"

"Someone that might recognize you. I just want you to be prepared for anything." Jim looked straight at McCoy. "And no you cannot strangle any of them. They are assisting us."

"Damn," the doctor muttered, walking toward his quarters, leaving Audrey and Jim alone.

"Soo…" she started. "I think it's about time for you to tell me about this old friend of yours."

Jim sighed. He had to give her the shortened version or they were going to be here forever. "Well… I met him while I was marooned on Delta Vega…"


	10. Forgetting Logic

Chp. 10 - Forgetting Logic

Audrey stared out the window, watching the dry landscape that was New Vulcan, and chuckling at the irate Doctor, who was ranting on the dangers of shuttles. According to Jim, who was piloting it with Spock, this was a common occurrence and it had thoroughly entertained her on the entire ride down.

The light brown sand whirled up in the air, tinged with red, making Audrey nostalgic for the Vulcan rocks. The high sun beat down harshly, making her groan inwardly at the heat she was about to endure. From what she studied about this planet was that the heat was still tolerable to Vulcans but to humans it was equivalent to the Sahara desert on Earth.

Which mean she just went from extreme cold to extreme dry heat. Thanks goodness for the doctor though, who had finally given her immunization boosters against the diseases known around this planet. Her body would be grateful for those stings later.

"From what I see, we will be meeting with the clan leader first before we meet any of the remaining scientists," Nyota, started, her hand fidgeting with the PADD. The Commander's was drawn away from her thoughts and remembered she was here, on a mission. It didn't help she hadn't seen Ambassador Sarek in years. All she could remember was her emotional downfall after hearing about her father's death.

"Who is the clan leader we are meeting with?" Audrey asked, taking the PADD handed to her. It saddened her to think that so many of the greatest scientific minds perished all at once.

"T'Pau," Uhura replied, causing the red hair Commander's head to whip around quickly. "What?"

"T'Pau, as in the grandmother of Spock, mother to Sarek?" Audrey screeched, her eyes wide. The Vulcan woman could be downright scary and extremely logical. Her last interaction with her was not the best, to say the least.

Nyota's forehead creased, re-reading the information given to her. "Oh, he is so dead," she muttered, causing Audrey to cough and try to cover up the chuckle.

"Even Vulcans can stretch the truth, dear," McCoy grumbled, grabbing his PADD and reading through the briefing.

"So not only do we have to explain to them why we had to come here in the first place, but what we need from them. Great."

Audrey nodded. "Spock may have copper based blood, but his has human genetics in it. I've already tried a few samples of his blood in what I think could be a cure, but it won't suffice. I need full Vulcan samples."

"And access to their archives, am I correct?" McCoy asked when the shuttle shuddered, causing him to jump. "Damn bucket of bolts."

Audrey laughed and shook her head. "That was just Jim turning toward the landing spot, and it just got caught in an upward draft. Nothing to be scared about," she said, patting the doctor on the knee and getting a scowl in return. "Yes I need access to what they have left. My mother could have left a clue to what she was doing when she got those samples."

"Are you saying that this has been in the works for longer than we know?" Nyota asked, her brown eyes curious.

She sighed. "Possibly. That's what I need to find out."

Before either one of them could grill her on any more information, Kirk's voice came over the intercom saying they were preparing to land. Audrey tugged at her hair, flattening any stray curls from her ponytail and took a deep breath.

Nyota finally realized that her counterpart was nervous and looked at her questioningly. "Why are you so nervous?"

Audrey stopped playing with her hair and just looked at her. "Because the last time I had contact with Vulcan was after my father's death," her breath shook but she continued. "Let's just say, I had one enormous emotional breakdown."

Nyota's mouthed formed an "O". McCoy raised an eyebrow waiting for Audrey to continue only to have Jim and Spock step into the bay. "You ready?" the Captain asked, eyeing the other three.

Audrey was the first to get up, grabbing the shawls to protect their heads and to honor the Vulcan culture. Handing one to Nyota, she secured hers over her head and braced herself for the abrasive heat.

Before she could take a step over the threshold though, a hand grabbed her arm and held her back. She could feel the uneasiness radiating from his mind and the question burning to be asked. Her brown eyes meet the electric blue ones and sighed.

"Are you okay?" Kirk asked, searching her face. Closing her eyes, she shielded her emotions carefully, hiding behind the wall that had been there since her father's death. Right now was not the time to let anyone in, let alone the Captain of the freaking Enterprise. In order to get through this meeting, her emotions had to be under control.

She breathed out slowly, opening her eyes again a small smile on her face. "I am now," she replied, nodding to the open door. "Can we go?"

Jim shook his head; shaking out of whatever reverie he had been in. "Right, time is of the essence."

Making sure her shawl was in place, Audrey stepped out in the bright sun and was faced with a sight she had never witnessed. Before her were two Spocks, one from this time and one from the future and beside them was T'Pau and Sarek.

Making sure her emotional control and shields were in place, she stepped forward with the rest of the delegation that here to help her out. Standing straight, she looked straight at the Vulcans before her.

The older Spock almost appeared shocked to see her, but carefully schooled his face into blankness. Sarek's face also showed no emotions but Audrey could feel the hint of sorrow, understanding what her and her mother had gone through all those years ago.

She held her hand up in the ta'a. "Dif-tor heh smusma."

T'Pau nodded his acknowledgement, the other two relaying the same message. "It is a pleasure to see you again, Commander. How can the Vulcan colony assist the Enterprise?"

"I come with a grave message, T'Pau," Audrey said, stepping forward. "My mother has been kidnapped, along with Captain Kirk's brother by a man named Kodos."

If the older Spock had known the name, his stance didn't change one bit. It was Ambassador Sarek who spoke next. "How can the Vulcans assist in that endeavor?" he asked, an eyebrow rising up.

Audrey didn't flinch. "Along with my mother, a deadly virus disappeared with her."

The sand blew up into her face, making her squint at the stoic being in front of her. She knew this was going to be difficult but she had hoped they might move inside before she had to explain all this. "I am enlisting the help of the small Vulcan Science Academy to help me derive and complete a vaccine for this virus."

"Why is it you cannot complete this onboard the Enterprise Commander?" the matriarch asked, causing Audrey to sigh.

"Unfortunately, even with the bright minds of myself, Doctor McCoy and Commander Spock, we cannot make the vaccine without Vulcan blood," she said, wiping the line of sweat that started on her brow.

Before anyone could reply, Jim spoke up. "I'm sure as much as you would enjoy questioning Commander Pearce now, I would suggest moving to a more…cooler place before one of us collapses from heat exhaustion."

Audrey bit her lip in an attempt to stifle the chuckle that wanted to come out. Leave it to Jim to state the obvious, and she was actually quite grateful for his outspokenness.

"I apologize Captain. We did not realize how abrasive this planet can be for the human race," Sarek said, turning on his heel in the direction of the colony. "Follow us, we will lead you to your quarters for the time being."

Audrey turned to see McCoy mouth thank you and sighed, knowing this was going to be a long day.

_

Jim had never been to Vulcan other than the entire fiasco on the drill. As it was he was unprepared for the harsh climate of this very planet. Sometimes he wondered how what remained of the Vulcans could stand it.

Following the three Vulcans that had greeted the landing party, his thoughts wandered to what the Commander had planned. His brother was in the hands of a madman, someone that had tried to kill both Kirk brothers numerous times.

The Captain also suspected it weighed heavily on the red head, only because he could feel at the edge of his mind the tumultuous emotions of her psyche. The slight look the elder Spock gave him said everything.

"I do hope these green blooded hobgoblins will help us," McCoy muttered, walking in step with him. "I hope they realize this is a real threat."

Jim turned his head to his best friend and rolled his eyes. "Let them hear the Commander out, Bones. I'm sure the Ambassadors will see the light."

Another gust of sand hit them in the faces and McCoy growled. "And soon, I hope. As much as I hate shuttle rides, the quicker we get off this god forsaken planet, the happier I'll be."

The blonde stifled a chuckle. "The only way you'll be happy Bones is with bourbon in your hands and not having me in sickbay." He looked around. "And right now only one is true."

Audrey looked back at him and smirked. "Way to make the doctor happy, Captain. Now I'm going to have to listen to him complain the entire time."

Jim couldn't contain his chuckle. "You know despite being on this ship only few days, Commander, you seem to have Bones' traits down pat."

He couldn't help but feel his heart warm at her sincere smile. "It also helps that I saw him a couple of times at Fleet Medical while I was at the Academy. He was just as grumpy then."

Bones huffed, and shoved Kirk with his shoulder. "Will you two stop gossiping about me and focus on the task at hand?" he growled, watching as they neared the towering structure before them.

The crew entered an antechamber that was filled with soothing fountain and air conditioning. Jim breathed a sigh of relief and stopped taking in the beauty around them.

"The Vulcan Colony has tried to the best of their abilities to recreate what Vulcan represented," Nyota said, her voice of awe. "From what Spock has said, this is almost a carbon copy of what the science academy had on Vulcan."

"You mean they liked water?" Bones asked, shaking his hair of the sand that had settled into it.

Nyota glared at the doctor. "They still do." Her look dared the doctor to retort and thank goodness he didn't.

Spock was busy conversing with his father and grandmother, while Audrey stood there, mouth agape. "I think you better close your mouth, Commander," Jim said, startling her. "Or something is bound to fly in there."

Before Audrey could reply, Spock interrupted him. "There are no insects here in the chamber, Captain," he calmly replied. "The Ambassadors and my grandmother wish an audience with us."

"They wish?" McCoy asked, an eyebrow shooting up.

Audrey turned back and shook her head in amusement. "They want."

Jim nodded to Spock, who returned to the three Vulcans gathered. Beyond them was a hand carved wooden door, intricate in patterns he did not recognize. It made him wonder if they were meeting with just the three of them or the High Council also.

His First Officer seemed to have the answers he sought. "It is imperative that we get my grandmother on our side. She is…"

"What, against the fact we have asked the Vulcans for help?" the doctor interrupted.

"Abstaining from any decision. She wishes to hear us out, but I cannot promise we will see the High Council today," Spock replied, glancing at the anxious face of Audrey. "They will forever remember what happened nine years ago, Commander. You must remember to control your emotions."

She nodded curtly. "I will endeavor to try."

Spock acknowledged her reply minutely. "That is all that I ask," he replied, his human eyes softening. "Old friend."

Jim's head shot up from his vantage point on the ground. Old friend? The two knew each other before this? He made a mental note to ask one of them once they were in private. This was something he had to hear.

"Then let's go. The quicker we can get an answer, the quicker we can get a cure and figure out where Kodos is," the Commander replied, walking briskly toward the now open door. Following in her footsteps, the Captain noticed the elder Spock, Ambassador Sarek and T'Pau seated in high backed chairs at the end of the room.

Taking a stance a few feet away from where Audrey stood, Jim noticed the recognition in both of the Vulcan's eyes and another note of nostalgia in Selek's eyes. He saw her shoulders straighten and blow out the breath she had been holding.

Whatever had happened in the past, Audrey was nervous. Her voice startled him out of his thoughts. "As I told you before, I come here with news of a great threat," she said, her voice steadily growing stronger. "Ten months ago, my mother disappeared from Starfleet's scopes and with her, a deadly virus she had created. High Command and the Federation believed she went rogue and killed her entire lab."

The Vulcan's face betrayed no emotion as she continued. "Being pulled from the Academy I was sent on a mission to find my mother. It wasn't until I was on Delta Vega that I had finally received a lead. It was then that I was attacked by both Romulans and Klingons. It was then that I called up the Enterprise for help."

The Elder Spock's face did not change, but his eyebrow shot up at the mention of the Romulans and Klingons. "It was then we realized that my mother had the virus she created in her possession."

Jim could see Audrey was trying to control her emotions and saw her wringing her hands. "A few hours later after I debriefed the command crew I received word from Admiral Pike that Captain Kirk's brother had been taken as leverage against us." She drew a deep breath. "Along with my mother."

That almost got a reaction out of the three Vulcans, who only stared at Audrey, so she continued. "I decrypted my data and analyzed the virus my mother created from her files."

The three at front remained quiet, probably analyzing every bit Audrey had to say. "The more Doctor McCoy, Spock and myself analyzed it, the more we realized how dangerous this virus was not only to the Terran race but also Vulcans."

Sarek was the first to speak, interrupting Audrey's monologue. "Please describe the virus your mother created."

The red head leaned her head back and took another deep breath. At the edges of his mind, Jim could feel agitation and nervousness, and realized he was feeling what Audrey felt. It absolutely fascinated him. "My mother created a virus that took away the violence, the ambition within our minds. With this virus she hoped to make a peaceful galaxy but unfortunately with the combination of the small pox virus, the thought backfired. Instead of creating peacefulness, beings would become enraged to a point of insanity. This increases their adrenaline in their systems and causes to see everyone as a threat. This strength allows them to kill with no remorse."

Jim's hand shook at the anger inside him. "As this is going on the small pox accelerates at a rate I have never seen, and therefore in this insane rage, kills the internal organs and causes them to bleed out."

T'Pau sat stoically before speaking. "How does this relate to the Vulcan race, Commander?"

She sighed heavily, and Jim noticed a resignation in the back of his mind. "My mother used Vulcan blood in the creation of this virus."

The chamber resonated in the silence it held. The Captain could tell everyone around him were holding their breaths and let it out when T'Pau spoke. "I am afraid we cannot help you further, Commander, Captain Kirk."

Jim was about to step forward and give her a piece of his mind when Bones held him back, nodding to the Commander who had already taken a few steps forward. "Let me remind you that this virus is a real threat to the Federation. I just saw three ships full of Cardissian die a painful death because Kodos, you know the mass murderer, decided to unleash the untested version of the virus!" Her voice was starting to rise an octave. "You cannot stay away from this, and you know it."

"I cannot see how the Vulcans can assist you, Commander," the clan mother answered, looking to the two other men for affirmation but for once they remained stoic.

Audrey finally had enough and he could feel it. "I will do whatever I deem necessary to get my mother back," her voice razor sharp. Jim had recognized the determination of a woman on a mission anywhere and if he guessed right, Audrey would get what she wanted.

"I see," T'Pau paused before continuing. "Your mother is a gifted scientist, Commander Pearce, one of the select few allowed to work with the Vulcan Science Academy. Logically, I cannot allow what remains of the Academy to assist you in your endeavor."

Audrey threw her arms in the air frustrated, not taking Spock's suggestion into consideration. Jim had a feeling they had a long way to go to convince the clan leader this was vital to their mission. "Logically? Forget logic for once, T'Pau. Not only does this virus pose a threat to the human race but yours also. Or did you forget that my mother used Vulcan blood to create it? So no matter what, this poses a threat to your already diminished rate."

Audrey stood there, her breath ragged. Jim could almost feel the sadness and frustration envelope him when she turned and stalked through the door. He couldn't even stop her in time before T'Pau spoke.

"Must she act like a petulant child?" she asked, her eyes following in the angry Commander's wake.

It was the elder Spock who spoke. "Her anger and frustration is understandable. With your permission, I would like to follow the Commander and speak to her myself."

T'Pau nodded. "Also inform Commander Pearce to meditate and form her shields if she wishes to confront a powerful empath like Kodos. I will trust in you to ensure that, Selek?"

The older Vulcan looked at Sarek when Spock spoke up. "My father and I will also work with the Commander on her shields, Grandmother. But until she calms down, I suggest Selek be the one to initiate any conversation."

The elder Vulcan woman stared at her grandson. "Then so be it. Tell the Commander we will reconvene in the morning and will overlook her outburst today." She stopped for a moment when the alternate Spock reached the door. "Also inform her we will assist in locating her mother. We now know what it is like to lose those we are bonded to."

As Selek left, Jim could only wonder what exactly T'Pau meant by losing those they were bonded to. It made him wonder if Audrey had lost more than her father and what that meant for them. _  
_ _


	11. Memories

_Memories _

Audrey knew the second she lost control of her emotions that she had almost doomed this mission to New Vulcan. She couldn't help it though-T'Pau had that effect on humans. The Vulcan woman also knew Audrey was a spy and had adamantly refused to help her without saying why. Jim must be extremely annoyed or confused, and judging by the slight bond she had with him, it was both.

She looked around and saw she was in a smaller room than what she was just in. It was delicately decorated with warms browns and tans, and the walls were intricately carved wood. There was a large bench in the middle and straight across from it was a painting of Vulcan from space. Smiling softly at the image it brought to her mind; Audrey sat down on the bench and sighed heavily.

In her time on the Enterprise she hadn't imagined she would have to resort to having to call on connections she had. Taking the PADD she had, the Commander looked at it carefully. The only person on the ship that would possibly knew she was a trained intelligence agent with her own team elsewhere in the galaxy was Spock and possibly Uhura, only because she probably tracked her transmissions.

She did not want Jim to find out her true calling and what she had been trained for before her deployment. Typing in her clearance codes, she skimmed through the information her team had gathered. The closest anyone of them got was the edge of Klingon space which is where she suspected Kodos to be hiding. In order to save her mother and Sam's life, Audrey was going to have to draw him out.

A footstep interrupted her typing, and was surprised to see the older Spock standing there before hers, hands clasped behind his back. "I see I might be interrupting," he started, making her put the PADD to the side and look at him curiously.

He was much the same as the Spock she knew, but so much different at the same time. When Jim had told her about him, she was curious - because honestly, the red head wanted to know about the Audrey he knew. The Commander smiled softly, hearing her comm beep twice signaling that her contact in the Vulcan Science Academy was near.

"All you are interrupting is just me calming down, Ambassador. How can I assist you?" Audrey asked, waving him closer.

He walked over, his human brown eyes searching hers and all of a sudden an unknown bond flourished in her mind and her head shot up surprised. His emotions were tightly controlled, but the one that came off the strongest surprised her.

It was melancholy. Its light blue color swirled around in the absent bond, and she could feel grief and a tinge of hesitation within it too. Scooting over to make room for the new addition to the room, Audrey looked at the painting, reveling in its beauty. Feeling him sit next to her, she kept [her] eyes trained on the wall ahead.

Without looking at the man she apparently had a bond with, she decided to get right to the point. "Why do we have a bond?" the feisty spy asked succinctly.

"In my universe, you were a very close…friend," Selek replied, the bond rippling with the light blue of melancholy. "Your kind was not known in my universe until about sixty years after I served on the Enterprise. I found out after you realized I had the same abilities. When you first served, you kept your abilities under careful watch and…"

"The rest is history," she said softly, turning to look at the older Vulcan. He gave her a smirk and his eyes twinkled with laughter. "The only way you would have bonded with me there was is you…"

The half smirk died away and a faraway look appeared on his face. "I did a mind meld with you to save your life. From then on, you were bonded to me in a way no one could describe. It was a mystery to the High Council when I first approached them about it."

Waiting for her to reply, Selek continued. "It was not a marriage bond, just a bond created from saving a life. Since nothing was known about the Betazoid race, the High Council determined it was an anomaly and sent us off."

Staring at her hands, Audrey couldn't bear the thought of having Spock melding with her to save her life. Breathing in deeply, she looked up to the gold ceiling and let the breathe out. It basically explained everything. Even in a different universe, he was attuned to her and had searched wildly for a bond that couldn't possibly exist in this timeline.

Yet he had managed to do so within an hour of seeing her. It was quite fascinating. Before she could speak, her comm beeped again. "T'Yrin can be an impatient Vulcan," the Vulcan said, making her look at him startled. "If there is one aspect that had not changed in this universe, Audrey, is that you have been and always will be a spy."

Her mouth opened and closed, as she tried to think of a reply. It hadn't occurred to her that there might be some similarities between his timeline and theirs, but this took her by surprise. "How did you know my contact was T'Yrin?" Audrey asked, turning her body toward him.

"I was in her presence when you contacted her," Selek answered, and his eyes danced with laughter watching her cross her arms and glare.

"She was supposed to be alone when I commed," she muttered, motioning him to continue.

"I also am in the presumption that she is in your service," he asked carefully,noticing her narrow her eyes at him. "Yet another similarity between the Audrey in my timeline and you."

"What exactly is that?"

"The narrowing of your eyes in regards to anything that angers you. My Jim was quite afraid of that look whenever you had it." Huffing silently, she looked at him to continue. "T'Yrin has interesting abilities, Commander, as you must know."

Audrey nodded her confirmation. T'Yrin not only was a very gifted scientist, but had some of the strongest telepathic abilities a Vulcan could. She wasn't just a touch telepath; she was a full blown telepath and had been recruited by Audrey three years ago when she came to visit Earth. Being the only Vulcan on a team of trained spies, T'Yrin was as stoic as they come. Yet she and Audrey were amazingly close and that is why she chose the Vulcan to be her second in command.

The Commander closed her eyes and reached for her friend, telling her she was occupied and she would arrange a meeting later. Feeling the affirmation at her message, Audrey looked at the older Spock again. "I sent her away," she said, placing one leg under her and sat there staring at Selek. "Now you need to tell me how you know everything."

The elder sat there for a moment thoughtfully and held out his fingers to her psi points. "It would be infinitely easier…"

She sighed heavily, waving him forward. "If you melded with me. I give you permission."

Placing his fingers on her psi points, whispering "Our minds one and together," and she was transported to a familiar place. In her mind she heard his voice.

_I was aspiring to look for a suitable colony for the remaining part of our race when I was introduced to T'Yrin._

That's why she recognized it, it was T'Yrin's lab and she was in the middle of it. Selek was standing there, analyzing specimens when a call came in. She knew that day. It was when Audrey had learned of several labs around the quadrant that could possibly house her mother's research. Her face popped up on the screen and she felt the recognition that Spock felt.

I saw your face and my memories transported me to a place I had almost forgotten.

She was on the Enterprise, just not the Enterprise she knew. She heard familiar voices and saw herself, older in some regards, in an intense conversation with McCoy. She couldn't hear the words but she knew that they were arguing about something as usual. This McCoy was just as impossible as the one they all knew.

Suddenly her flailing arms stopped and her body froze in place, her eyes widened in fear. The blue eyes of the doctor looked surprised and then concerned and out right afraid when that Audrey collapsed to the floor.

"Spock!" the Doctor said, his tri corder running over the motionless body frantically.

I had felt a strange presence in my mind and I knew something was amiss. I asked the Doctor if any of his reading carried any clout. When he mentioned that your reading were perfectly normal, I acknowledged that your empathic abilities had been hindered.

Just as I am doing now I did then. I melded with you, and saw another empathic power had invaded your mind.

She felt his desperation, his determination to save her. Audrey surmised she must have been an integrated part of the crew for Spock to fight like this.

It took me the better part of three days to fight off the unknown attacker. It was afterward that I realized a bond had been formed. Once you had noticed, you ran away taking a captaincy on the Voyager. You had thought it was a marriage bond, and as a friend I knew it was a thought you dreaded.

I never knew the meaning of love, however I knew of the nights you spent with the Captain. You were in essence his first and only true love.

He never married, and died christening a new Enterprise. Your position as an intelligence agent was never revealed to the Captain, a friend to us both. I, however, found out through the mind meld. Your captaincy was a cover for one of the most admirable and deadly network of agents ever to be heard of. In my time you were an admirable and formidable leader.

To the day I was transported through the black hole, your legacy lived on. It was your negotiations and intelligence that helped with the peace treaty between the Klingons and the Federations. The Romulans also bowed to your will and you singlehandedly brought them to peace. 

She was transported back to the present and her emotional shields were a wreck. Tears streaked down her face, memories of her other self implanted in her mind. "I apologize, the emotional transference…"

"Was to be expected," she replied, wiping the tears from her face. Her shields were down and she needed mediation to get them back up. "I do have a question though."

Selek nodded. "Can you read through these files and tell me if you see anything I missed?" she asked, handing him her personal PADD and watched as he scrolled through it. She carefully scrutinized his face, looking for any indication that he knew something she didn't. His eyebrow shot up and she was immediately alert.

"What is it?"

"Have you any idea what this file is?" the Ambassador asked, pointing to a highly encrypted file named AA.

She shook her head. "I have a feeling it holds pertinent information but I cannot decrypt it for the life of…" she trailed off, looking at it carefully. Audrey's mother had always had a systematic encryption in place, just in case anyone tried to duplicate her work. The only person she would trust to get into her files would be Audrey, her very own flesh and blood.

"You have figured it out," the older Vulcan said succinctly.

She slapped her forehead in frustration. How had she not noticed it before? Of course this file was the hardest to figure out; it was meant for her eyes only.

AA.

Audrey and Auriana. Her father had always said that his double A's are what got him through every mission.

"Gimme," she muttered, looking at the encryption on the file. It was not only a numerical formula but her mother had placed DNA identification on italso. Her eyes widened, knowing exactly what she had to do. Her mother had left the actual file - the one she needed- with the Vulcans.

Audrey started to get up when her mind, her senses was invaded by something familiar. It was presence she hadn't felt fully in years and she felt her conscious self fade away, and only saw one image.

A holding cell with a star map in front of her and she knew right away who was reaching out to her.

_"Mom?" _


End file.
